Monticello Field Office Releases Proposed Resource Management Plan

Contact:  Tom Heinlein, 435-587-1500
Monticello RMP Site

Monticello, Utah—September 5, 2008—The Bureau of Land Management, Utah State Office, is pleased to announce that the Proposed Resource Management Plan (PRMP) and Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Monticello Field Office is available for review.  BLM prepared the PRMP/FEIS in consultation with cooperating agencies, taking into account public comments received during this planning effort. This PRMP/FEIS provides a framework for the future management direction and appropriate use of BLM-administered lands and resources located in San Juan and Grand counties, Utah. The document contains both land use planning decisions and implementation decisions to guide the BLM’s management of the Monticello Field Office. The PRMP/FEIS is open for a 30-day review and protest period beginning the date the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes the Notice of Availability of the FEIS in the Federal Register.

This PRMP/FEIS has been developed in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA). The PRMP/FEIS is largely based on Alternative C, the Preferred Alternative in the Draft RMP and EIS, which was released in November 2007. This PRMP/FEIS contains the proposed plan and potential impacts of the proposed plan.  The alternatives presented in the Draft RMP/EIS are also provided for comparative purposes. Major comments received during the public review period of the Draft RMP/EIS and responses to these comments are provided on an attached CD. To aid the reader, substantive changes made between the Draft RMP/EIS and the PRMP/FEIS are described in Chapter 1 and are detailed in Appendix S.

E-mailed and faxed protests will not be accepted as valid protests unless the protesting party also provides the original letter by either regular or overnight mail postmarked by the close of the protest period.   Under these conditions, the BLM will consider the e-mailed or faxed protest as an advance copy and will afford it full consideration.  If you wish to provide the BLM with such advance notification, please direct faxed protests to the attention of Brenda Williams, BLM protest coordinator at 202-452-5112, and e-mailed protests to: Brenda_Hudgens-Williams@blm.gov.

All protests, including the follow-up letter (if e-mailing or faxing) must be in writing and mailed to the following address:

Regular Mail:                                 Overnight Mail:
BLM Director (210)                         BLM Director (210)    
Attention:  Brenda Williams           Attention:  Brenda Williams 
P.O. Box 66538                             1620 L Street, N.W., Suite 1075
Washington, D.C.  20035              Washington, D.C.  20036 

All protests must be postmarked on or before the end of the 30-day protest period following publication of this notice by the EPA. 

For more information, see our website at http://www.blm.gov/ut/st/en/fo/monticello/planning.html.