[Federal Register: February 27, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 38)]
[Notices]               
[Page 8777-8778]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27fe07-117]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[AK-932-1430-FQ; AA-86850]

 
Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting; 
Alaska

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (U.S. 
Forest Service), has filed an application with the Bureau of Land 
Management (BLM) requesting the Secretary of the Interior to withdraw 
approximately 720 acres of land for the Spencer Glacier Recreation and 
Mineral Material Site, a part of the Chugach National Forest 
reservation in Alaska. This notice segregates the land from location 
and entry under the United States mining laws for 2 years, while 
various studies and analyses are made to support a final decision on 
the withdrawal application. The land will remain open to all other uses 
which can by law be made of National Forest lands, including 
disposition of materials under the Act of July 31, 1947, as amended.

DATES: Comments and requests for a public meeting must be received by 
May 29, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Comments and meeting requests should be sent to the Alaska 
State Director, BLM Alaska State Office, 222 West 7th Avenue, No. 13, 
Anchorage, Alaska 99513-7504, and to the Regional Forester, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Alaska Region, P.O. Box 
21628, Juneau, Alaska 99802-1628.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terrie D. Evarts, BLM Alaska State 
Office, (907) 271-5630.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The applicant for the above withdrawal is 
the U.S. Forest Service at the address stated above. Acting on behalf 
of and with the consent of the Secretary of Agriculture, the applicant 
requests the Secretary of the Interior, pursuant to section 204 of the 
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, 43 U.S.C. 1714, 43 CFR 
2310.1-2(c)(3), to withdraw the following described National Forest 
System land for a period of 20 years from location and entry under the 
United States mining laws, subject to valid existing rights:

Seward Meridian

Chugach National Forest

T. 7 N., R. 2 E., unsurveyed.
    Sec. 2, S\1/2\SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 11, N\1/2\, N\1/2\SW\1/4\, SE\1/4\SW\1/4\, and N\1/2\SE\1/
4\;
    Sec. 12, W\1/2\NW\1/4\ and NW\1/4\SW\1/4\.
    The area described contains approximately 720 acres.

    The use of a right-of-way, an interagency agreement, or a 
cooperative agreement would not adequately constrain non-discretionary 
mining locations and related uses.
    There are no suitable alternative sites with comparable developed 
access and suitable quantity and quality of gravel and quarry rock. The 
purpose of the proposed withdrawal will be to aid in making high 
quality rock and gravel available for community uses and is also 
identified for protection of access from the railroad for existing 
recreational amenities including glacier viewing, rafting, and the 
trail network development.
    No additional water rights would be needed to fulfill the purpose 
of the requested withdrawal.
    The case file, including applicable environmental documents, can be 
examined by interested persons in the BLM Alaska State Office, at the 
address stated above.
    For a period of 90 days from the date of publication of this 
notice, all persons who wish to submit comments, suggestions, or 
objections in connection with the proposed withdrawal may present their 
views in writing to the Alaska State Director of the Bureau of Land 
Management at the address indicated above. Individual respondents may 
request confidentiality. Before including your address, phone number, 
e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your 
comment, be advised that your entire comment--including your personal 
identifying information--may be made publicly available at any time. 
While you can ask us in your comment to withhold from public review 
your personal identifying information, we cannot guarantee that we will 
be able to

[[Page 8778]]

do so. If you wish to withhold your name or address from public review 
or from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, you must state 
this prominently at the beginning of your comments. Such requests will 
be honored to the extent allowed by law. All submissions from 
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, will be made available for public inspection in their 
entirety.
    Notice is hereby given that an opportunity for a public meeting is 
afforded in connection with the proposed withdrawal. All interested 
persons who desire a public meeting for the purpose of being heard on 
the proposed withdrawal must submit a written request to the BLM Alaska 
State Director within 90 days from the date of publication of this 
notice. Upon determination by the authorized officer that a public 
meeting will be held, a notice of the time and place will be published 
in the Federal Register and a newspaper in the vicinity of the above-
described land, at least 30 days before the scheduled date of the 
meeting.
    The application will be processed in accordance with the 
regulations set forth in 43 CFR 2300.
    For a period of 2 years from February 27, 2007, the land will be 
segregated as specified above unless the application is denied or 
canceled or the withdrawal is approved prior to that date.
    The temporary land uses which may be permitted during this 
segregative period are all public uses consistent with the processing 
of common variety minerals, access, and recreational utilization of the 
area.

(Authority: 43 CFR 2310.3-1(b))

Dated: January 23, 2007.

Carolyn J. Spoon,
Chief, Branch of Lands and Realty, Division of Resources, Lands, and 
Planning.
 [FR Doc. E7-3365 Filed 2-26-07; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310-JA-P