Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 103 / Tuesday, May 29, 2001 / Notices 29163

Name of Committee: Center for Scientific

Review Special Emphasis Panel.

Date: June 14–15, 2001.

Time: 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Agenda: To review and evaluate grant

applications.

Place: Radisson Barcelo, 2121 P Street,

NW., Washington, DC 20037.

Contact Person: Victoria S. Levin, MSW,

Scientific Review Administrator, Center for

Scientific Review, National Institutes of

Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 3172,

MSC 7848, Bethesda, MD 20892, (301) 435–

0912, levinv@csr.nih.gov.

Name of Committee: Center for Scientific

Review Special Emphasis Panel.

Date: June 15, 2001.

Time: 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Agenda: To review and evaluate grant

applications.

Place: Holiday Inn, 8120 Wisconsin

Avenue, Bethesda, MD 20814.

Contact Person: Paul D. Wagner, PhD,

Scientific Review Administrator, Center for

Scientific Review, National Institutes of

Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 5194,

MSC 7840, Bethesda, MD 20892, (301) 435–

6809, wagnerp@csr.nih.gov.

(Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Nos. 93.306, Comparative Medicine,

93.306; 93.333, Clinical Research, 93.333,

93.337, 93.393–93.396, 93.837–93.844,

93.846–93.878, 93.892, 93.893, National

Institutes of Health, HHS)

Dated: May 22, 2001.

LaVerne Y. Stringfield,

Director, Office of Federal Advisory

Committee Policy.

[FR Doc. 01–13332 Filed 5–25–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4140–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CA–650–01–1220–JG–064B]

Closure Order for Motorized Vehicle

Use, Surprise Canyon Area of Critical

Environmental Concern BLM Route

P71, Panamint Mountains, Inyo

County, CA

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

United States Department of the

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of vehicle closure on

BLM Route P71 in the Surprise canyon

area of critical environmental concern,

Panamint Mountains in Inyo County,

California.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

BLM Route P71 is closed to motorized

vehicle use within the Surprise Canyon

Area of Critical Environmental Concern

(ACEC).

Order: The public lands from a point

located in the vicinity of Chris Wicht

Camp approximately four miles east of

the intersection of BLM Route P71 and

the Indian Ranch/Wingate Road to the

boundary of Death Valley National Park

within the Surprise Canyon ACEC is

hereby closed to all motorized vehicle

use. No person may use, drive,

transport, park, let stand, or have charge

or control over any motorized vehicle in

the area located east of the closure signs

and the BLM locked gate. Exemptions to

this order may be granted to law

enforcement and other emergency

vehicles in the course of official duties.

Exemptions to this order may be granted

to the holders of private property in the

vicinity of Panamint City in Death

Valley National Park for reasonable

access after receiving a written

agreement and a key from the Ridgecrest

Field Office Manager.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This closure is effective

upon publication in the Federal

Register and will remain in effect until

rescinded by the authorizing official

which will occur when a final decision

on the disposition of the road will be

made after the National Environmental

Policy Act and California Desert

Conservation Area Plan amendment

processes are completed. BLM will

implement the proposed action effective

the date of publication in the Federal

Register, without prior notice and

opportunity for public comment,

because of the imminent need for

regulatory authority to prevent illegal/

unauthorized vehicle intrusion into the

Surprise Canyon Wilderness and

potential risk to aquatic/riparian

resources.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Field Office Manager, Bureau of Land

Management, Ridgecrest Field Office,

300 South Richmond Road, Ridgecrest

CA 93555, (760) 384–5405.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In March

16, 2000, the Center for Biological

Diversity, et al. (Center) filed for

injunctive relief in U.S. District Court,

Northern District of California (Court)

against the Bureau of Land Management

(BLM) to immediately prohibit all

grazing activities that may affect listed

species. The Center alleges the BLM was

in violation of section 7 of the

Endangered Species Act (ESA) by failing

to enter into formal consultation with

the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

(FWS) on the effects of adoption of the

California Desert Conservation Area

Plan (CDCA Plan), as amended, upon

threatened and endangered species. On

August 25, 2000, the BLM

acknowledged through a court

stipulation that activities authorized,

permitted, or allowed under the CDCA

Plan may adversely affect threatened

and endangered species, and that the

BLM is required to consult with the

FWS to insure that adoption and

implementation of the CDCA Plan is not

likely to jeopardize the continued

existence of threatened and endangered

species or to result in the destruction or

adverse modification of critical habitat

of listed species.

Although BLM has received biological

opinions on selected activities,

consultation on the overall CDCA Plan

is necessary to address the cumulative

effects of all the activities authorized by

the CDCA Plan. Consultation on an

overall plan is complex and the

completion date uncertain. Absent

consultation on the entire plan, the

impacts of individual activities, when

added together with the impacts of other

activities in the desert, are not known.

The BLM entered into negotiations with

plaintiffs regarding interim actions to be

taken to provide protection for

endangered and threatened species

pending completion of consultation on

the plan. Agreement on these interim

actions avoided litigation of plaintiffs’

request for injunctive relief and the

threat of an injunction prohibiting all

activities authorized under the plan.

These interim agreements allowed BLM

to continue appropriate levels of activity

throughout the planning area during the

lengthy consultation process while

providing protection to the desert

tortoise and other listed species in the

short term. By taking interim actions as

allowed under 43 CFR 8364.1, BLM

contributes to the conservation of the

endangered and threatened species in

accordance with 7 (a)(1) of the ESA.

BLM also avoids making any

irreversible or irretrievable commitment

of resources which would foreclose any

reasonable and prudent alternatives

which might be required as a result of

the consultation on the CDCA Plan in

accordance with 7(d) for the ESA. In

January 2001, the parties signed the

Stipulation and Proposed Order

concerning All Further Injunctive

Relief.

This closure order is issued to provide

interim protection of riparian habitat,

water quality, sensitive wildlife

resources, and wilderness values within

the Surprise Canyon ACEC until such a

time when the BLM completes a

thorough review and analysis of various

methods of access in Surprise Canyon

and complies with the processes

required by the National Environmental

Policy Act and the California Desert

Conservation Area Plan. This interim

closure will allow BLM to properly

evaluate and arrive at a final decision on

environmentally acceptable methods of

access in Surprise Canyon while

protecting the canyon from further

impact caused by the operation of offVerDate 11<MAY>2000 17:37 May 25, 2001 Jkt 194001 PO 00000 Frm 00089 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM pfrm11 PsN: 29MYN1
29164 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 103 / Tuesday, May 29, 2001 / Notices

highway vehicles. Concerns over the

effects of off-highway vehicle use in

Surprise Canyon on environmental

quality and natural resources have been

raised in a lawsuit filed against the

BLM, and these concerns need to be

addressed through the processes

required by the National Environmental

Policy Act and the California Desert

Conservation Area Plan.

The canyon riparian zone currently

does not meet the BLM’s minimum

standards for a properly functioning

riparian system due to soil erosion and

streambed alterations caused by offhighway vehicle use. The Surprise

Canyon ACEC supports several

California BLM and California State

sensitive plant and animal species that

are dependant on a properly functioning

riparian system.

The canyon will remain open for

human use that does not entail the use

of a motorized vehicle within the area

closed by this order. Maps showing the

affected area are available by contacting

the Ridgecrest Field Office, California

Desert Conservation Area, Ridgecrest,

CA. A gate will be erected at the closure

points and the affected area will be

posted with public notices and standard

motorized vehicle closure signs. The

BLM will issue a final decision on

allowable methods of public access in

Surprise Canyon following completion

of public scoping, and a National

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

compliance document. The NEPA

compliance document will evaluate a

full range of options for management of

human access to Surprise Canyon

within the area affected by the interim

closure.

Authority for this closure is found in

43 CFR 8364.1. Violations of this order

may be subject to the penalties provided

according to 43 CFR 8360.0–7.

Dated: May 23, 2001.

Gail Acheson,

Acting Deputy State Director for Resources.

[FR Doc. 01–13538 Filed 5–25–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–40–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

Glen Echo Park, Montgomery County,

MD

ACTION: Record of Decision.

I. Introduction

The Department of the Interior,

National Park Service (NPS), has

prepared this Record of Decision on the

Final Management Plan/Environmental

Impact Statement (FMP/EIS) for Glen

Echo Park, Montgomery County,

Maryland pursuant to the National

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and

Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ)

regulations. This Record of Decision is

a statement of the decision made, the

background of the project, other

alternatives considered, the basis for the

decision, the environmentally preferable

alternative, measures to minimize

environmental harm, and public

involvement in the decision making

process.

II. Background of the Project

For over a century, Glen Echo Park

has served the region as a center for

education, entertainment and cultural

development. This special site, which

has been a National Chautauqua site

(1891), an amusement park site (1899–

1968), and an arts and cultural park

(1971–present), is 1.5 miles northwest of

Washington, DC and has been a haven

for generations of area residents and

visitors. On April 1, 1970 GSA received

title to the 9.3-acre site. The site was

acquired through a land exchange for

the Old Emergency Hospital at 1711

New York Ave., NW., Washington, DC

and was held surplus by the General

Services Administration (GSA). From

1971–1976, the National Park Service

(NPS) operated the park in cooperation

with GSA and the park officially became

part of NPS in 1976. When the land was

acquired it contained a number of

structures that were in very poor

condition. Several were removed and

others received minimal repair. From

the very beginning, the NPS recognized

the need to establish a Public/Private

Partnership to both rehabilitate the

structures and establish a creative

education program that would reflect

the spirit of the Chautauqua Assembly.

In 1984, an NPS approved Management

Facilities Program outlined a five-year

program incorporating short and longterm goals and a scope of work for

projects to be funded by the Federal

government and private sector.

Unfortunately, funds from both groups

were limited, improvements were

minor, and park management began to

consider historic leasing. Local citizen

opposition to such a proposal led to the

formation of the Glen Echo Park

Foundation, which was established in

May 1987 to raise $3 million within five

years for rehabilitation of the structures.

The Foundation was unsuccessful in

achieving its goal, and the park

structures have continued to deteriorate.

By the mid-1990s, funding to

rehabilitate decaying park structures

was still not available and the park’s

resources were in danger of being lost.

The National Park Service began a

process through which a Management

Plan (MP) could be developed. As part

of that process, the NPS examined

options for future operation of the park,

including scenarios that assumed

existing park resources would

eventually be lost. Since the planning

process began, Montgomery County, the

State of Maryland, and the Federal

government have all committed funding

to support the stabilization and

rehabilitation of the structures at Glen

Echo Park. This funding, however, does

not support improvements to the

interior of the buildings, and does not

help cover the park’s operating

expenses. Furthermore, as the structures

continue to age, the maintenance needs

of the park will continue to grow. A

management plan for Glen Echo Park is

needed to provide a framework for the

continued management and operation of

the park.

III. Decision (Selected Action)

The National Park Service will

implement the preferred alternative, the

Modified Public Partnership, identified

in the FMP/EIS issued on March 9,

2001. Figure I illustrates the chosen

management structure. Figure II

illustrates the selected management

zones for the park. The selected

alternative is also the environmentally

preferred alternative identified in the

FMP/EIS. It will improve the visitor

experience, maintain the traditional

uses of the park, improve the diversity

in its programs, and enhance the

preservation of cultural and historic

resources through an improved revenue

structure. It is expected to create only

minor environmental impacts and

inconveniences to adjoining

communities. As a part of this decision,

the NPS will also implement measures

to minimize adverse impacts to the

environment (i.e. mitigations) (see VIII

below).

The NPS has used public partnership

arrangements very successfully at

several parks. Based on this experience,

along with the analysis of the potential

environmental impacts contained

within the FMP/EIS, the NPS believes

the Modified Public Partnership

alternative is the best arrangement for

the park, the surrounding communities,

and the park’s users. Under the selected

alternative, the NPS will enter into

negotiations with Montgomery County,

MD, to prepare a long-term agreement

whereby Montgomery County would

take over the majority of management

and operations at Glen Echo Park. If the

NPS and Montgomery County were

unable to finalize an agreement, the NPS

would seek another similar partner with