For Immediate Release: December 7, 2001 CA-610-02-15
Contact: Doran Sanchez (909) 697-5220; E-MAIL: dasanche@ca.blm.gov

BLM Schedules Public Meetings to Gather Comments on River Study

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has scheduled four public scoping meetings to gather public comment on the preparation of a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) and Wild and Scenic Suitability Study for rivers within the Northern and Eastern Mojave Desert (NEMO) planning area.

The public scoping meetings will be held at the following dates, times, and locations:

Friday, December 7 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Parish Hall Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church 849 Home Street Bishop, CA	Saturday, December 8 9:00 a.m. to 12 noon Board Rooms 1 and 2 Heritage Inn 1050 North Norma Ridgecrest, CA
Monday, December 10 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Community Building at Inyo County Park Tecopa Hot Springs Road Tecopa Hot Springs, CA	Wednesday, December 12 7:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Bureau of Land Management California Desert District Office 6221 Box Springs Blvd. Riverside, CA

The DEIS and sutiability study will analyze segments of the Central Amargosa River, Surprise Canyon and Cottonwood Creek to determine if they are suitable for inclusion in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System (NWSRS). BLM invites public comment on issues they would like addressed in the suitability study, planning criteria to be used in the analysis, and eligibility or non-eligibility of any river within the NEMO planning area, which encompasses about 2.4 million acres of public lands in eastern San Bernardino and Inyo Counties of California.

The suitability study will include lands within 1/4 mile of each streambank. Alternatives may recommend various segments are not eligible for designation, or be designated as wild, scenic, or recreational. The DEIS will include an amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area Plan to protect rivers recommended as suitable, until Congress acts on a final recommendation.

Comments will be accepted through Wednesday, December 19, 2001. Send comments regarding the Amargosa River to the Bureau of Land Management, Wild and Scenic River, 2601 Barstow Road, Barstow, CA 92311. Send comments regarding Surprise Canyon and Cottonwood Creek to the Bureau of Land Management, Wild and Scenic River, 300 South Richmond Road, Ridgecrest, CA 93555.

For more information contact BLM's Barstow Field Office at (760) 252-6000.

-BLM-