BLM Alaska News Release Feed

Ted Murphy named BLM-Alaska Associate State Director (8/3/2012)

Fri, 3 Aug 2012 20:40:20 -0600

Ted Murphy has been named the new Associate State Director of the Bureau of Land Management in Alaska. Murphy begins his new position on August 13.

BLM-Alaska State Director Bud Cribley says, “Ted’s extensive field office, state office and national experience in Washington, D.C., in combination with his understanding of BLM-Alaska’s key programs have prepared him for this leadership role.”

Cribley notes that Murphy has been involved with National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska oil and gas lease sales including planning for and management of the reserve. Murphy’s previous duties also included responsibility for BLM-Alaska’s other planning efforts, and minerals, subsistence, wildlife, fisheries, recreation, forestry, and cultural resource programs. Murphy has a degree in mining engineering from Montana Tech, and began his federal career with the U.S. Geological Survey.

BLM Issues Interim Final Rule Regarding Placer Mining Claim Maintenance Fees (07/27/2012)

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 12:55:10 -0600

Read the News Release

BLM-AK to Issue a Supplement to the Draft EIRMP/EIS and Extend the Comment Period (7/3/2012)

Tue, 3 Jul 2012 15:30:20 -0600

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced today its intention to release a Supplement to the Eastern Interior Draft Resource Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement (RMP/EIS) and extend the comment period for the Draft RMP/EIS past the current deadline of July 30, 2012. The Supplement, expected in coming weeks, will amend Alternative D of the Draft RMP/EIS to address hardrock mineral leasing in the White Mountains National Recreation Area. The Supplement will be available for a minimum 90-day public comment period. The BLM will continue to accept comments on the Draft RMP/EIS during this 90-day comment period, and will schedule additional public meetings and Section 810 subsistence hearings for the Supplement. The availability of the Supplement and the closing date for the extended comment period will be published in the Federal Register and on the BLM Eastern Interior RMP Home Page through www.blm.gov/ak when the Supplement is released for public comment.

The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act withdraws the White Mountains National Recreation Area from the mining laws, but allows the Secretary of the Interior to issue leases for hardrock minerals if such leasing would not have significant adverse effects on the recreation area. The Draft RMP/EIS released in February considered hardrock mineral leasing in the White Mountains but did not analyze it in detail. Public comments received in response to the Draft RMP/EIS prompted the BLM to conduct further legal research on this issue. As a result, the BLM decided that the Supplement was needed to analyze a full range of alternatives and to obtain public comment on hardrock mineral leasing in the White Mountains. Although release of the Supplement will delay the planning schedule for the RMP/EIS, the BLM concluded that addressing the issue of hardrock mineral leasing now is preferable to risking even longer delays by waiting until later in the planning process.

For information about the Eastern Interior planning process, visit the Eastern Interior RMP Home Page at www.blm.gov/ak or contact the BLM at (907) 474-2340 or (800) 437-7021 (within Alaska).

Plan for National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Receives 400,000 Comments (06/21/2012)

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 21:10:40 -0600

ANCHORAGE – The comment period for the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Draft Integrated Activity Plan and Environmental Impact Statement ended June 15, 2012. During the comment period, the Bureau of Land Management in Alaska received nearly 400,000 comments from key stakeholders including, tribal and native corporations and other native organizations, government agencies, elected officials, industry and business organizations, conservation organizations and individual citizens.

“This plan is an important step in our efforts to facilitate the development of oil and gas, while protecting multiple surface resources in the Reserve and honoring Native Alaskans’ subsistence rights,” said BLM-Alaska State Director Bud Cribley. “We have conducted a robust and extensive public outreach program to educate the public about the NPR-A, and to gather comments from people who have a stake in its future. We will fully consider this input in developing the preferred alternative for the NPR-A.”

The Draft IAP/EIS proposes four future management strategies for the NPR-A. This plan is the first plan that covers the entire NPR-A, including BLM-managed lands in the southwest area of the NPR-A which were not included in previous plans.

“Key issues that will be addressed in the plan are oil and gas leasing decisions and the protection of surface resources, including protections for caribou and waterfowl and their habitats near Teshekpuk Lake, and habitat for caribou of the Western Arctic Herd in the Utokok River uplands in the southwestern NPR-A,” said Cribley. “The plan will also consider and establish ground rules for onshore infrastructure, including the potential for a pipeline across the NPR-A.”

As part of the outreach for the NPR-A plan, the BLM accepted comments online, by mail, fax and in person. Also, BLM Field and State Office staff hosted a total of eight public meetings over two weeks from May 14, 2012, through May 24, 2012, in North Slope villages and other locations. The comment period was initially set to end June 1, but the BLM extended the comment period by two weeks to give people more time to provide comments. The BLM also scheduled an additional public meeting in Point Lay to provide an opportunity to comment for Point Lay residents who were engaged in subsistence whaling during the first public meeting in that community. The comments received will be considered in preparation of the Final EIS/IAP, which is expected to be completed in November 2012.

“In addition to our efforts to solicit comments on the plan, we tried some creative approaches to educate the public about the significance of the NPR-A, from a resource perspective,” said Cribley. “For example, we hosted a special series of lectures at the BLM-Alaska Campbell Creek Science Center that highlighted the people, the land and the resources found within the NPR-A. We worked with Alaska Public Radio to record and broadcast the lectures and to make them available online.”

BLM-Alaska Arctic Field Office Archaeologist Stacy McIntosh’s talk about “People, Land, & Resources of the NPR-A” is available on the Alaska Public Radio website and can be accessed at: www.blm.gov/ak/newsroom. Another segment in the series, Arctic Field Office Archaeologist Mike Kunz’s talk on the “Prehistory of the NPR-A,” will be available at a later date.

BLM to Premiere New Film at Arctic Interagency Visitor Center in Coldfoot (06/18/2012)

Mon, 18 Jun 2012 16:25:40 -0600

FAIRBANKS, Alaska — The Bureau of Land Management will celebrate the release of a new film, Arctic Visions & Voices, with a reception and screening at 7 p.m. on the summer solstice, June 21, 2012, at the Arctic Interagency Visitor Center in Coldfoot.

Comment Period for National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Draft Plan extended to June 15th (5/26/2012)

Tue, 29 May 2012 14:10:20 -0600

ANCHORAGE - BLM-Alaska will extend the comment period for the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Draft Integrated Activity Plan and Environmental Impact Statement to June 15, 2012.

“The plan is complex and will guide important decisions about the future management of the NPR-A,” said BLM-Alaska State Director Bud Cribley. “We have received requests from several stakeholders requesting we extend the comment period. We decided that we could balance the need to complete the plan in a timely manner and the need to be responsive to our stakeholders by extending the comment period for an additional two weeks.”

The Draft IAP/EIS proposes four alternative future management strategies for the NPR-A. This plan is the first plan that covers the entire NPR-A, including BLM-managed lands in the southwest area of the NPR-A which were not included in previous plans. Decisions to be made as part of this plan include oil and gas leasing availability, surface protections, Wild and Scenic River recommendations, and Special Area designations.

Public comments will be accepted through June 15, 2012. Comments may be submitted:

· Online by accessing the BLM’s website at www.blm.gov/ak By mail to: NPR-A IAP/EIS Comments, AECOM Project Office, 1835 South Bragaw Street, Suite 490, Anchorage, AK 99508.

· By fax to (866) 611-942 or (907) 268-4224.

· By hand-delivering comments to AECOM at their Anchorage address listed above or to BLM’s Public Information Center in the Federal Building, 222 W. 7th Ave., Anchorage.

· By speaking at public meetings on the draft IAP/EIS. There is one additional public meeting scheduled for June 5, 2012 in Point Lay, Alaska.

The comment period for the NPR-A Draft IAP/EIS began on March 30, 2012 and was to end on June 1, 2012. With the extension to June 15, the comment period will total 77 days. BLM Field and State Office staff hosted a total of eight public meetings over two weeks from May 14, 2012, through May 24, 2012, in North Slope villages and other locations. Additionally, another public meeting will be held in Point Lay on June 5, 2012, in conjunction with BLM’s previously scheduled Subsistence Advisory Panel meeting. This will provide an opportunity to comment to Point Lay residents who were engaged in subsistence whaling activities during the May 14, 2012 meeting. Public testimony from the meetings was recorded and will be included in the NPR-A IAP/EIS administrative record. These comments will be carefully considered in preparation of the Final EIS/IAP, along with other comments provided by the public and stakeholders.

If you have questions about the public comment process, please call Jim Ducker, BLM-Alaska Project Lead at (907) 271-3130.

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Notice of Tundra Closure for National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (5/21/2012)

Mon, 21 May 2012 20:55:20 -0600

BLM-Alaska Celebrates 150 Years of the Homestead Act (5/18/2012)

Fri, 18 May 2012 17:55:10 -0600

Anchorage—Alaska Governor Sean Parnell has declared May 20, 2012, Federal Homestead Day in Alaska. In addition to the Governor’s proclamation, BLM-Alaska is marking the 150^th anniversary of the Homestead Act with several local events and a new Webpage. Grab the family and jump in the wagon (or station wagon!) this 4^th of July and join BLM-Alaska as we honor 150 years of the Homestead Act. BLM-Alaska will participate in the Anchorage July 4^th Parade and will host a Homesteading in Alaska-themed booth at the Festival on the Parkstrip from Noon to 6:00 p.m. at the Anchorage 4^th of July Celebration on the Delaney Parkstrip. The last female homesteader in America, Elizabeth M. Smith, and other Alaskan homesteaders will join us at the booth to talk about their experiences homesteading on the Last Frontier. The booth will also feature interpretive displays and materials on homesteading and its history. BLM-Alaska has also developed a Web page that covers the origins, opportunities and legacy of Homesteading in Alaska. The page features an interactive timeline, videos, photos and a downloadable poster. The page can be found on the BLM-Alaska website at www.blm.gov/ak.

Media Advisory: BLM-Alaska Joins Facebook & Twitter, Become a Fan! (05/16/2012)

Wed, 16 May 2012 19:35:50 -0600

BLM-Alaska now has two Facebook pages, one for the BLM-Alaska www.facebook.com/BLMAlaska and one for the BLM-White Mountains National Recreation Area www.facebook.com/BLMWhiteMountains and two active Twitter pages, one for BLM-Alaska @BLMAlaska and one for the Campbell Creek Science Center @BLMCCSC. The BLM-Alaska social media pages are maintained by local BLM employees to strengthen the public’s connection to and enjoyment of BLM-managed lands in the state of Alaska, and to encourage them to share their experiences with each other.

“Communication in Alaska presents many unique challenges - Alaska's expansive physical geography, climate and the fact that many villages are disconnected from the road system add to the challenges of connecting with our stakeholders, " said BLM-Alaska State Director, Bud Cribley. "Recent improvements in communications infrastructure, including new efforts to expand broadband internet and cell phone coverage in rural Alaska have expanded the potential for using social media, and will allow citizens to interact and participate with BLM programs and management decisions regarding public lands in ways they never could.”

By using social media, BLM-Alaska is taking an interactive approach to gaining involvement in outdoor and educational programs, recreation on public lands, youth events, updates in policy and land management decisions, and collaborations with partner agencies.

Here at BLM-Alaska we invite and encourage you and your agency or organization to “Like” our Facebook pages and to “Follow” us on Twitter to stay current with BLM-managed land issues and information.

BLM-Alaska offers Active Duty Military Free Annual Pass to Public Lands (05/16/2012)

Wed, 16 May 2012 15:50:20 -0600

To show our appreciation for those who serve in the U.S. military, on May 19 - Armed Forces Day - the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will join with other federal agencies to issue annual passes that offer free access to public lands for active duty military members and their dependents. Entry to BLM-managed public lands is already free in Alaska; however this military version of the America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass permits free entrance to sites managed by the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the U.S. Forest Service.