I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 236

To establish the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area

in the State of Idaho, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 5, 1993

Mr. LAROCCO introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to the

Committees on Natural Resources, and Merchant Marine and Fisheries

A BILL

To establish the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area in the State of Idaho, and for other

purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

4 The Congress finds the following:

5 (1) The public lands managed by the Bureau of

6 Land Management in the State of Idaho within the

7 Snake River Birds of Prey Area contain one of the

8 densest known nesting populations of eagles, falcons,

9 owls, hawks, and other birds of prey (raptors) in

10 North America.
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1 (2) These public lands constitute a valuable na2 tional biological and educational resource since birds

3 of prey are important components of the ecosystem

4 and indicators of environmental quality, and contrib5 ute significantly to the quality of wildlife and human

6 communities.

7 (3) These public lands also contain important

8 historic and cultural resources (including significant

9 archaeological resources) as well as other resources

10 and values, all of which should be protected and ap11 propriately managed.

12 (4) A military training area within the Snake

13 River Birds of Prey Area, known as the Orchard

14 Training Area, has been used since 1953 by reserve

15 components of the Armed Forces. Military use of

16 this area is currently governed by a Memorandum of

17 Understanding between the Bureau of Land Man18 agement and the State of Idaho Military Division,

19 dated May 1985. Operating under this Memoran20 dum of Understanding, the Idaho National Guard

21 has provided valuable assistance to the Bureau of

22 Land Management with respect to fire control and

23 other aspects of management of the Orchard Train24 ing Area and the other lands in the Snake River

25 Birds of Prey Area. Military use of the lands within
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1 the Orchard Training Area should continue in ac2 cordance with such Memorandum of Understanding

3 (or extension or renewal thereof), to the extent con4 sistent with section 4(e) of this Act, because this

5 would be in the best interest of training of the re6 serve components (an important aspect of national

7 security) and of the local economy.

8 (5) Protection of the conservation area as a

9 home for raptors can best and should be accom10 plished by the Secretary of the Interior, acting

11 through the Bureau of Land Management, under a

12 management plan that—

13 (A) emphasizes management, protection,

14 and rehabilitation of habitat for these raptors

15 and of other resources and values of the area;

16 (B) provides for continued military use,

17 consistent with the requirements of section 4(e)

18 of this Act, of the Orchard Training Area by re19 serve components of the Armed Forces;

20 (C) addresses the need for public edu21 cational and interpretive opportunities;

22 (D) allows for diverse appropriate uses of

23 lands in the area to the extent consistent with

24 the maintenance and enhancement of raptor

25 populations and habitats and protection and
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1 sound management of other resources and val2 ues of the area; and

3 (E) demonstrates management practices

4 and techniques that may be useful to other

5 areas of the public lands and elsewhere.

6 (6) There exists near the conservation area a

7 facility, the World Center for Birds of Prey operated

8 by The Peregrine Fund, Inc., where research, public

9 education, recovery, and reestablishment operations

10 exist for endangered raptor species. There also exists

11 at Boise State University a raptor study program

12 which attracts national and international graduate

13 and undergraduate students.

14 (7) The Bureau of Land Management and

15 Boise State University, together with other State,

16 Federal, and private entities, have formed the

17 Raptor Research and Technical Assistance Center to

18 be housed at Boise State University, which provides

19 a unique adjunct to the conservation area for raptor

20 management, recovery, research, and public visita21 tion, interpretation, and education.

22 (8) Consistent with requirements of sections

23 202 and 302 of the Federal Land Policy and Man24 agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1712 and 1732),

25 the Secretary has developed a comprehensive man-
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1 agement plan and, based on such plan, has imple2 mented a management program for the public lands

3 included in the conservation area established by this

4 Act.

5 (9) Additional authority and guidance must be

6 provided to assure that essential raptor habitat re7 mains in public ownership, to facilitate sound and

8 effective planning and management, to provide for

9 effective public interpretation and education, to en10 sure continued study of the relationship of humans

11 and these raptors, to preserve the unique and irre12 placeable habitat of the conservation area, and to

13 conserve and properly manage the other natural re14 sources of the area in concert with maintenance of

15 this habitat.

16 (10) An ongoing research program funded by

17 the Bureau of Land Management and the National

18 Guard is intended to provide information to be used

19 in connection with future decisionmaking concerning

20 management of all uses, including continued military

21 use, of public lands within the Snake River Birds of

22 Prey Area.

23 (11) Public lands in the Snake River Birds of

24 Prey Area have been used for domestic livestock

25 grazing for more than a century, with resultant ben-
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1 efits to community stability and contributions to the

2 local and State economies. It has not been dem3 onstrated that continuation of this use would be in4 compatible with appropriate protection and sound

5 management of raptor habitat and the other re6 source values of these lands; therefore, subject to the

7 determination provided for in section 4(f), it is ex8 pected that such use will continue in accordance

9 with applicable regulations of the Secretary and the

10 management plan for the conservation area.

11 (12) Hydroelectric facilities for the generation

12 and transmission of electricity exist within the

13 Snake River Birds of Prey Area pursuant to a

14 license(s) issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory

15 Commission, or its predecessor, the Federal Power

16 Commission.

17 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

18 As used in this Act:

19 (1) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

20 of the Interior.

21 (2) The term ‘‘conservation area’’ means the

22 Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation

23 Area established by section 3.
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1 (3) The term ‘‘raptor’’ or ‘‘raptors’’ means indi2 viduals or populations of eagles, falcons, owls,

3 hawks, and other birds of prey.

4 (4) The term ‘‘raptor habitat’’ includes the

5 habitat of the raptor prey base as well as the nesting

6 and hunting habitat of raptors within the conserva7 tion area.

8 (5) The term ‘‘Memorandum of Understand9 ing’’ means the Memorandum of Understanding

10 #ID–237, dated May 1985, between the State of

11 Idaho Military Division and the Bureau of Land

12 Management.

13 (6) The term ‘‘Orchard Training Area’’ means

14 that area generally so depicted on the map referred

15 to in section 3(b), and as described in the Memoran16 dum of Understanding as well as the air space over

17 the same.

18 (7) The term ‘‘Impact Area’’ means that area

19 which was used for the firing of live artillery projec20 tiles and is used for live fire ranges of all types and,

21 therefore, poses a danger to public safety and which

22 is generally so depicted on the map referred to in

23 section 3(b).

24 (8) The term ‘‘Artillery Impact Area’’ means

25 that area within the Impact Area into which live
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1 projectiles are fired, which is generally described as

2 that area labeled as such on the map referred to in

3 section 3(b).

4 (9) The term ‘‘the plan’’ means the comprehen5 sive management plan developed for the conservation

6 area, dated August 30, 1985, together with such re7 visions thereto as may be required in order to imple8 ment this Act.

9 (10) The term ‘‘hydroelectric facilities’’ means

10 all facilities related to the generation, transmission,

11 and distribution of hydroelectric power and which

12 are subject to, and authorized by, a license(s), and

13 any and all amendments thereto, issued by the Fed14 eral Energy Regulatory Commission.

15 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL CONSERVATION

16 AREA.

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT AND PURPOSES.—(1) There is

18 hereby established the Snake River Birds of Prey National

19 Conservation Area (hereafter referred to as the ‘‘conserva20 tion area’’).

21 (2) The purposes for which the conservation area is

22 established, and shall be managed, are to provide for the

23 conservation, protection, and enhancement of raptor popu24 lations and habitats and the natural and environmental

25 resources and values associated therewith, and of the sci-
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1 entific, cultural, and educational resources and values of

2 the public lands in the conservation area.

3 (3) To the extent compatible with the purposes speci4 fied in paragraph (2), uses of the public lands in the con5 servation area existing on the date of enactment of this

6 Act shall be allowed to continue, subject to the provisions

7 of this Act.

8 (b) AREA INCLUDED.—The conservation area shall

9 consist of approximately 482,457 acres of Federally owned

10 lands and interests therein managed by the Bureau of

11 Land Management as generally depicted on the map enti12 tled ‘‘Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation

13 Area’’, dated November 1991.

14 (c) MAP AND LEGAL DESCRIPTION.—As soon as is

15 practicable after enactment of this Act, the map referred

16 to in subsection (b) and a legal description of the con17 servation area shall be filed by the Secretary with the

18 Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs of the House

19 of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and

20 Natural Resources of the Senate. Each such map shall

21 have the same force and effect as if included in this Act;

22 except that the Secretary may correct clerical and typo23 graphical errors in such map and legal description. Each

24 such map shall be on file and available for public inspec25 tion in the office of the Director and the Idaho State Di-
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1 rector of the Bureau of Land Management of the Depart2 ment of the Interior.

3 (d) WITHDRAWALS.—Subject to valid existing rights,

4 the Federal lands within the conservation area are hereby

5 withdrawn from all forms of entry, appropriation, or dis6 posal under the public land laws; and from entry, applica7 tion, and selection under the Act of March 3, 1877 (Ch.

8 107, 19 Stat. 377, 43 U.S.C. 321 et seq.; commonly re9 ferred to as the ‘‘Desert Lands Act’’), section 4 of the

10 Act of August 18, 1894 (Ch. 301, 28 Stat. 422; 43 U.S.C.

11 641; commonly referred to as the ‘‘Carey Act’’), the Act

12 of July 3, 1890 (Ch. 656, 26 Stat. 215; commonly referred

13 to as the ‘‘State of Idaho Admissions Act’’), section 2275

14 of the Revised Statutes, as amended (43 U.S.C. 851), and

15 section 2276 of the Revised Statutes, as amended (43

16 U.S.C. 852). The Secretary shall return to the applicants

17 any such applications pending on the date of enactment

18 of this Act, without further action. Subject to valid exist19 ing rights, as of the date of enactment of this Act, lands

20 within the Birds of Prey Conservation Area are withdrawn

21 from location under the general mining laws, the operation

22 of the mineral and geothermal leasing laws, and the min23 eral material disposal laws.
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1 SEC. 4. MANAGEMENT AND USE.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—(1)(A) Within 1 year after the

3 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall finalize

4 a management plan that is in conformance with the re5 quirements of this Act.

6 (B) Thereafter, the Secretary shall review the plan

7 at least once every 4 years and shall make such revisions

8 as may be necessary or appropriate.

9 (C) In reviewing and revising the plan, the Secretary

10 shall provide for appropriate public participation.

11 (2) Except as otherwise specifically provided in sub12 sections (d), (e), and (f) of this section, the Secretary shall

13 allow only such uses of lands in the conservation area as

14 the Secretary determines will further the purposes for

15 which the Conservation Area is established.

16 (b) MANAGEMENT GUIDANCE.—After each review

17 pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary shall make such

18 revisions as may be needed so that the plan and manage19 ment program to implement the plan include, in addition

20 to any other necessary or appropriate provisions, provi21 sions for—

22 (1) protection for the raptor populations and

23 habitats and the scientific, cultural, and educational

24 resources and values of the public lands in the con25 servation area;
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1 (2) identifying levels of continued military use

2 of the Orchard Training Area compatible with para3 graph (1) of this subsection;

4 (3) public use of the conservation area consist5 ent with the purposes of this Act;

6 (4) interpretive and educational opportunities

7 for the public;

8 (5) a program for continued scientific investiga9 tion and study to provide information to support

10 sound management in accordance with this Act, to

11 advance knowledge of raptor species and the re12 sources and values of the conservation area, and to

13 provide a process for transferring to other areas of

14 the public lands and elsewhere this knowledge and

15 management experience;

16 (6) such vegetative enhancement and other

17 measures as may be necessary to restore or enhance

18 prey habitat;

19 (7) the identification of levels, types, timing,

20 and terms and conditions for the allowable non21 military uses of lands within the conservation area

22 that will be compatible with the protection, mainte23 nance, and enhancement of raptor populations and

24 habitats and the other purposes for which the con25 servation area is established; and
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1 (8) assessing the desirability of imposing appro2 priates fees for public uses (including, but not lim3 ited to, recreational use) of lands in the conservation

4 area, which are not now subject to fees, to be used

5 to further the purposes for which the conservation

6 area is established.

7 (c) VISITORS CENTER.—The Secretary, acting

8 through the Director of the Bureau of Land Management,

9 is authorized to establish, in cooperation with other public

10 or private entities as the Secretary may deem appropriate,

11 a visitors center designed to interpret the history and the

12 geological, ecological, natural, cultural, and other re13 sources of the conservation area and the biology of the

14 raptors and their relationships to man.

15 (d) VISITORS USE OF AREA.—In addition to the Visi16 tors Center, the Secretary may provide for visitor use of

17 the public lands in the conservation area to such extent

18 and in such manner as the Secretary considers consistent

19 with the protection of raptors and raptor habitat, public

20 safety, and the purposes for which the conservation area

21 is established. To the extent practicable, the Secretary

22 shall make available to visitors and other members of the

23 public a map of the conservation area and such other edu24 cational and interpretive materials as may be appropriate.
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1 (e) NATIONAL GUARD USE OF THE AREA.—(1)

2 Pending completion of the ongoing research concerning

3 military use of lands in the conservation area, or until the

4 date 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act,

5 whichever is the shorter period, the Secretary shall permit

6 continued military use of those portions of the conserva7 tion area known as the Orchard Training Area in accord8 ance with the Memorandum of Understanding, to the ex9 tent consistent with the use levels identified pursuant to

10 subsection (b)(2) of this section.

11 (2) Upon completion of the ongoing research concern12 ing military use of lands in the conservation area, the Sec13 retary shall review the management plan and make such

14 additional revisions therein as may be required to assure

15 that it meets the requirements of this Act.

16 (3) Upon completion of the ongoing research concern17 ing military use of lands in the conservation area, the Sec18 retary shall submit to the Committees on Interior and In19 sular Affairs and Merchant Marine and Fisheries of the

20 House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy

21 and Natural Resources of the Senate a report of the re22 sults of such research.

23 (4) Nothing in this Act shall preclude minor adjust24 ment of the boundaries of the Orchard Training Area in
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1 accordance with provisions of the Memorandum of Under2 standing.

3 (5) After completion of the ongoing research concern4 ing military use of lands in the Orchard Training Area

5 or after the date 5 years after the date of enactment of

6 this Act, whichever first occurs, the Secretary shall con7 tinue to permit military use of such lands, unless the Sec8 retary, on the basis of such research, determines such use

9 is not compatible with the purposes set forth in section

10 3(a). Any such use thereafter shall be permitted in accord11 ance with the Memorandum of Understanding, which may

12 be extended or renewed by the Secretary so long as such

13 use continues to meet the requirements of subsection

14 (b)(2) of this section.

15 (6) In accordance with the Memorandum of Under16 standing, the Secretary shall require the State of Idaho

17 Military Division to insure that military units involved

18 maintain a program of decontamination.

19 (7) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as by itself

20 precluding the extension or renewal of the Memorandum

21 of Understanding, or the construction of any improve22 ments or buildings in the Orchard Training Area so long

23 as the requirements of this subsection are met.

24 (f) LIVESTOCK GRAZING.—(1) If the Secretary deter25 mines that domestic livestock grazing is compatible with
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1 the purposes for which the conservation area is estab2 lished, the Secretary shall permit such use of public lands

3 within the conservation area, to the extent such use of

4 such lands is compatible with such purposes.

5 (2) Any livestock grazing on public lands within the

6 conservation area, and activities the Secretary determines

7 necessary to carry out proper and practical grazing man8 agement programs on such lands (such as animal damage

9 control activities) shall be managed in accordance with the

10 Act of June 28, 1934 (43 U.S.C. 315 et seq.; commonly

11 referred to as the ‘‘Taylor Grazing Act’’), section 402 of

12 the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976

13 (43 U.S.C. 1752), other laws applicable to such use and

14 programs on the public lands, and the management plan

15 for the conservation area.

16 (g) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary is

17 authorized to provide technical assistance to, and to enter

18 into such cooperative agreements and contracts with, the

19 State of Idaho and with local governments and private en20 tities as the Secretary deems necessary or desirable to

21 carry out the purposes and policies of this Act.

22 (h) AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES.—Nothing in this Act

23 shall be construed as constituting a grant of authority to

24 the Secretary to restrict recognized agricultural practices
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1 or other activities on private land adjacent to or within

2 the conservation area boundary.

3 (i) HYDROELECTRIC FACILITIES.—Notwithstanding

4 any provision of this Act, or regulations and management

5 plans undertaken pursuant to its provisions, the Federal

6 Energy Regulatory Commission shall retain its current ju7 risdiction concerning all aspects of the continued and fu8 ture operation of hydroelectric facilities, licensed or reli9 censed under the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 791a et

10 seq.), located within the boundaries of the conservation

11 area.

12 SEC. 5. ADDITIONS.

13 (a) ACQUISITIONS.—(1) The Secretary is authorized

14 to acquire lands and interests therein within the bound15 aries of the conservation area by donation, purchase with

16 donated or appropriated funds, exchange, or transfer from

17 another Federal agency, except that such lands or inter18 ests owned by the State of Idaho or a political subdivision

19 thereof may be acquired only by donation or exchange.

20 (2) Any lands located within the boundaries of the

21 conservation area that are acquired by the United States

22 on or after the date of enactment of this Act shall become

23 a part of the conservation area and shall be subject to

24 this Act.
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1 (b) PURCHASE OF LANDS.—In addition to the au2 thority in section 318(d) of the Federal Land Policy Man3 agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1748) and notwithstand4 ing section 7(a) of the Land and Water Conservation

5 Fund Act of 1964 (16 U.S.C. 4601–9(a)), monies appro6 priated from the Land and Water Conservation Fund may

7 be used as authorized in section 5(b) of the Endangered

8 Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1534(b)), for the purposes

9 of acquiring lands or interests therein within the conserva10 tion area for administration as public lands as a part of

11 the conservation area.

12 (c) LAND EXCHANGES.—The Secretary shall, within

13 4 years after the date of enactment of this Act, study,

14 identify, and initiate voluntary land exchanges which

15 would resolve ownership related land use conflicts within

16 the conservation area.

17 SEC. 6. OTHER LAWS AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

18 (a) OTHER LAWS.—(1) Nothing in this Act shall be

19 construed to supersede, limit, or otherwise affect adminis20 tration and enforcement of the Endangered Species Act

21 of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) or to limit the applicabil22 ity of the National Trails System Act to any lands within

23 the conservation area.

24 (2) Except as otherwise specifically provided in this

25 Act, nothing in this Act shall be construed as limiting the
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1 applicability to lands in the conservation area of laws ap2 plicable to public lands generally, including but not limited

3 to the National Historic Preservation Act, the Archae4 ological Resources Protection Act of 1979, or the Native

5 American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.

6 (3) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as by itself

7 altering the status of any lands that on the date of enact8 ment of this Act were not managed by the Bureau of Land

9 Management.

10 (4) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as prohibit11 ing the Secretary from engaging qualified persons to use

12 public lands within the conservation area for the propaga13 tion of plants (including seeds) to be used for vegetative

14 enhancement of the conservation area in accordance with

15 the plan and in furtherance of the purposes for which the

16 conservation area is established.

17 (b) RELEASE.—The Congress finds and directs that

18 the public lands within the Snake River Birds of Prey Nat19 ural Area established as a natural area in October 1971

20 by Public Land Order 5133 have been adequately studied

21 and found unsuitable for wilderness designation pursuant

22 to section 603 of the Federal Land Policy and Manage23 ment Act of 1976. Such lands are hereby released from

24 further management pursuant to section 603(c) of such
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1 an Act and shall be managed in accordance with other

2 applicable provisions of law, including this Act.

3 (c) EXISTING ADMINISTRATIVE WITHDRAWAL TER4 MINATED.—Public Land Orders 5133 dated October 12,

5 1971, and 5777 dated November 21, 1980, issued by the

6 Secretary are hereby terminated subject to subsections

7 (d)(3) and (d)(4).

8 (d) WATER.—(1) The Congress finds that the United

9 States is currently a party in an adjudication of rights

10 to waters of the Snake River, including water rights

11 claimed by the United States on the basis of the reserva12 tion of lands for purposes of conservation of fish and wild13 life and that consequently there is no need for this Act

14 to effect a reservation by the United States of rights with

15 respect to such waters in order to fulfill the purposes for

16 which the conservation area is established.

17 (2) Nothing in this Act or any action taken pursuant

18 thereto shall constitute either an expressed or implied res19 ervation of water or water rights for any purpose.

20 (3) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as effecting

21 a relinquishment or reduction of any of the water rights

22 held or claimed by the United States within the State of

23 Idaho or elsewhere on or before the date of enactment of

24 this Act.
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1 (4) The Secretary and all other officers of the United

2 States shall take all steps necessary to protect all water

3 rights claimed by the United States in the Snake River

4 adjudication now pending in the district court of the State

5 of Idaho in which the United States is joined under section

6 208 of the Act of July 10, 1952 (66 Stat. 560; 43 U.S.C.

7 666; commonly referred to as the ‘‘McCarran Amend8 ment’’).

9 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

10 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

11 as may be necessary to carry out this Act.

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