Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 116 / Friday, June 15, 2001 / Notices 32639

CFR part 4, Subpart E, shall be deemed

to have waived their rights.

ADDRESSES: A copy of the decision may

be obtained from: Bureau of Land

Management, Alaska State Office, 222

West Seventh Avenue, #13, Anchorage,

Alaska 99513–7599.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Barbara Opp, (907) 271–5669.

Authority: 43 CFR 2650.7(d).

Barbara J. Opp,

Land Law Examiner.

[FR Doc. 01–15110 Filed 6–14–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–$$–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[WY–920–1320–EL, WYW153467]

Coal Lease Exploration License, WY

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of invitation for coal

exploration license.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 2(b) of the

Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as

amended by section 4 of the Federal

Coal Leasing Amendments Act of 1976,

90 Stat. 1083, 30 U.S.C. 201(b), and to

the regulations adopted at 43 CFR 3410,

all interested parties are hereby invited

to participate with Triton Coal

Company, LLC on a pro rata cost sharing

basis in its program for the exploration

of coal deposits owned by the United

States of America in the followingdescribed lands in Campbell County,

WY:

T. 42 N., R. 70 W., 6th P.M., Wyoming

Sec. 6: Lots 8–23;

Sec. 7: Lots 5–14;

Sec. 8: Lots 1–12, 16;

Sec. 9: Lots 1–8, 11–14;

T. 43 N., R. 70 W., 6th P.M., Wyoming

Sec. 31: Lots 13–20;

T. 42 N., R. 71 W., 6th P.M., Wyoming

Sec. 1: Lots 5–15, 19, 20.

Containing 2,816.14 acres, more or less.

All of the coal in the above-described

land consists of unleased Federal coal

within the Powder River Basin Known

Recoverable Coal Resource Area. The

purpose of the exploration program is to

obtain data on the Wyodak coal seam.

ADDRESSES: The proposed exploration

program is fully described and will be

conducted pursuant to an exploration

plan to be approved by the Bureau of

Land Management. Copies of the

exploration plan are available for review

during normal business hours in the

following offices (serialized under

number WYW153467): BLM, Wyoming

State Office, 5353 Yellowstone Road,

P.O. Box 1828, Cheyenne, WY 82003;

and, BLM, Casper Field Office, 2987

Prospector Drive, Casper, WY 82604.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This

notice of invitation will be published in

‘‘The News-Record’’ of Gillette, WY,

once each week for two consecutive

weeks beginning the week of June 11,

2001, and in the Federal Register. Any

party electing to participate in this

exploration program must send written

notice to both the BLM and Triton Coal

Company, LLC no later than thirty days

after publication of this invitation in the

Federal Register. The written notice

should be sent to the following

addresses: Triton Coal Company, LLC,

North Rochelle Mine, Attn: Tim L.

Thamm, 510 Reno Road, Gillette, WY

82718, and the BLM, Wyoming State

Office, Branch of Solid Minerals, Attn:

Mavis Love, P.O. Box 1828, Cheyenne,

WY 82003.

The foregoing is published in the

Federal Register pursuant to 43 CFR

3410.2–1(c)(1).

Dated: May 29, 2001.

Phillip C. Perlewitz,

Chief, Branch of Solid Minerals.

[FR Doc. 01–14924 Filed 6–14–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CA–610–01–1610–DL]

Proposed Order for Temporary Closure

of Selected Routes of Travel or Areas

in Imperial County, Riverside County,

and San Bernardino County, California

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

Interior.

SUMMARY: Selected routes of travel or

areas in two locations in the California

Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) will

be temporarily closed to vehicle use

pursuant to 43 CFR 8364.1. The

proposed closure is to provide interim

protection for the desert tortoise, desert

tortoise habitat, and other resource

values from motorized vehicle use

authorized under the CDCA Plan. By

taking these interim actions, BLM

contributes to the conservation of the

endangered and threatened species in

accordance with section 7(a) (1) of the

Endangered Species Act (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) of the ESA. These

closures will remain in effect until

records of decision are signed for

amendments to the CDCA Plan for the

Northern and Eastern Colorado Desert

and the West Mojave Desert.

The vehicle route closures are as

follows: 1. In the Edwards Bowl area

vehicle use is restricted to specified

routes. 2. In two areas of desert tortoise

critical habitat in the Northern and

Eastern Colorado Desert (NECO)

planning area vehicle use is restricted to

specified routes.

Exceptions to the vehicle closures

include Bureau of Land Management

(BLM) operation and maintenance

vehicles, law enforcement and fire

vehicles, and other emergency vehicles.

The Orders for closure will be posted

in the appropriate BLM Field Office and

at places near and/or within the area to

which the closure or restriction applies

(see Field Offices at end of this Notice).

DATE: No sooner than July 16, 2001,

Federal Register Orders of final closure

will be published for each of the two

areas.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be

sent to the appropriate Field Office,

Attn: Route Closure, at the addresses

listed below.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March

16, 2000, the Center for Biological

Diversity, and others (Center) filed for

injunctive relief in U.S. District Court,

Northern District of California (Court)

against the Bureau of Land Management

(BLM) alleging that 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 the

overall Plan is complex and the

completion date is uncertain. Absent

consultation on the entire Plan, the

impacts of individual activities, when