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For Immediate Release: October 11, 2001 CA-610-02-02
Contact: Doran Sanchez (909) 697-5220; E-MAIL: dasanche@ca.blm.gov
Decision Record for Bighorn Sheep Research in the
Peninsular Ranges Available
A decision record published by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for proposed bighorn sheep research on BLM-managed public lands in the Peninsular Ranges of southern California has been released for public review.
The selected alternative is the proposed action as analyzed in the environmental assessment released August 28, 2001, with additional mitigation measures. This alternative provided the best balance in meeting BLM's need to obtain information about bighorn sheep, while minimizing impacts to bighorn sheep from research endeavors.
Additional mitigation measures were designed to ensure research efforts would result in a public benefit by providing to BLM information necessary to make sound land management decisions that both provide for public land uses and promote recovery of the sheep.
The information needs to support recovery of the Peninsular Ranges bighorn sheep include: 1) population estimates of sufficient reliability to closely follow annual and long-term trends, 2) location data to match to habitat modeling which includes the number, sex and location of sheep relative to time and various landscape features (for example lambing areas, watering locations, trails, etc.). BLM analysis concludes this information should better inform future decision making processes, provided it is available in a form suitable for public decision making and it is gathered in a manner that avoids significant risk to individuals or groups of sheep.
Copies of the decision record are available at BLM's Palm Springs Field Office, 690 W. Garnet Ave., North Palm Springs, CA (760) 251-4800, and El Centro Field Office, 1661 S. 4th Street, El Centro, CA (760) 337-4400. The decision record is available online at www.ca.blm.gov/palmsprings/.
This decision may be appealed to the Interior Board of Land Appeals, Office of the Secretary, in accordance with the regulations at Title 43 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 4. If an appeal is taken, your notice of appeal must be filed in the Palm Springs-South Coast Field Office, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Department of the Interior, 690 West Garnet Avenue, P.O. Box 1260, North Palm Springs, California 92258 by November 5, 2001.
For more information regarding the Recovery Plan research proposals or the decision record, please contact BLM Wildlife Biologist Rachelle Huddleston-Lorton at (760) 251-4800 or by e-mail at Rachelle_Huddleston-Lorton@ca.blm.gov.
-BLM-
California Desert District Office - 6221 Box Springs Blvd, Riverside, California - (909) 697-5220 |
