U.S. Department of the Interior - Bureau of Land Management - 1998 Annual Report
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is a diverse and geographically dispersed agency charged with the complex mission of managing 264 million acres of public lands and their myriad resources across the western states and Alaska, as well as 300 million additional acres of subsurface mineral estate. The Bureau's workforce includes more than 10,000 permanent, temporary, seasonal, and other employees located in over 200 headquarters, center, and field offices.
In managing the Nation's vast public land holdings, the BLM performs many tasks: resource inventory, land use planning, environmental impact assessment, land surveying, road construction, fish and wildlife habitat restoration, and resource condition monitoring, to name just a few.
The wealth of resources on America's public lands is an asset belonging to all of us. As steward of the public lands, the BLM is committed to ensuring the health and productivity of these lands and resources and to sustaining public uses for generations to come. Taken together, the myriad public land resources and uses-commercial activities, natural and cultural resources, recreation, wilderness, and many others-help create the very fabric of American society.
Along with our partners, our customers, elected officials, and the general public, we are working hard to restore and maintain the health of your public lands todayand the priceless legacy they represent for our Nation and its many diverse peoples.
Director's LetterAs the Acting Director of the Bureau of Land Management, I am pleased to present this report of our accomplishments for 1998. Working closely with our partners and customers, we have done our best to exercise wise and effective stewardship for America's vast legacy of public lands, with their wide-open landscapes and myriad natural and cultural resources.
Developing a long-term vision for America's public lands is the first step in achieving wise stewardship. Management actions on the ground must be guided by an overall vision that protects the land and its resources while enabling people to enjoy and benefit from the wealth of opportunities available on public lands.
We seek close partnerships with state and local governments, Indian tribes, other federal agencies, and all of our publics, as we embrace a process that addresses all of the physical, biological, economic, and social aspects of land and resource management. Our actions will be guided by consensus building and by a shared vision that emphasizes public land health and preservation of the wide-open spaces increasingly valued by all of us.
One of the highlights of this past year has been the continued success of the Resource Advisory Councils that have been established throughout the western states. These Councils continue to provide a unique forum for local citizens who use and value the public lands to have a voice in their management. In 1998, we completed another round of appointments to 21 of these Councils, further institutionalizing this innovative approach to addressing natural resource management issues on the ground.
There are literally hundreds of examples where we have all worked together as Americans to establish a common vision for-and to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of-our Nation's public lands and resources. We look forward to continuing to care for the land and all who depend on it and cherish it, serving as stewards of your priceless heritage: America's public lands.
Message from the Chief Financial OfficerThe BLM issued its first audited financial statements at the end of fiscal year 1991 and received unqualified ("clean") audit opinions for fiscal years 1995, 1996, and 1997. We are very proud to have achieved these milestones, and I am pleased to report that we have again received an unqualified audit opinion on our financial statements for fiscal year 1998. These opinions reflect the importance and priority we place on our stewardship responsibilities and our commitment to sound financial management.
Restoring and maintaining the health, diversity, and productivity of our Nation's public lands requires strong internal business and support service functions. As an agency, we must provide accurate and timely management information, pay the bills for goods and services, manage our office space, maintain our vehicles, and handle the myriad tasks associated with financial and budget record keeping. All of these responsibilities, and many more business functions as well, are critical to our ability to do our job.
This past year, we continued to implement a Management Information System that will provide all Bureau employees with financial information that is up-to-date and electronically accessible. We also made significant strides in developing an activity based costing and management system. In addition, we continued to use and develop our redesigned acquisition system, including the use of charge cards for many purchases, convenience checks for vendors who don't accept charge cards, Internet/electronic commerce and contracting, commercial item buys (instead of special orders), performance-based service contracts, and two Web-based customer service guides. These new tools and improved business practices have enabled us to work smarter, satisfy customers, increase efficiency, and obtain the best value for the taxpayers' money.
We also began the process of transitioning to a new integrated charge card that will replace three separate charge cards currently used for travel expenses, supply and equipment purchases, and fuel and other vehicle expenses. The new charge card is providing us with an opportunity to completely reengineer the Bureau's credit card processes, eliminating any unnecessary steps and saving considerable time and money. And we made significant progress in preparing the Bureau's automated systems for the Year 2000 (Y2K) transition.
We continued to implement the Service First program (formerly known as the "Trading Post" initiative). Under this initiative, BLM and Forest Service offices at several Colorado and Oregon locations have combined their resources and functions under one roof to better serve the public.
We also continued to refine our customer research methodology and applications to strengthen our ability to work with our partners and serve our customers. In fiscal year 1998, we surveyed our use authorization processes for oil and gas, rights-of-way, land acquisitions and exchanges, grazing permits, and recreation permits.
Finally, we continue to implement a new approach to conducting internal evaluations based on preventing problems rather than detecting them after the fact, and on identifying and publicizing best practices so that every BLM office can benefit from innovative thinking. This redesigned evaluation process will build efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability into all of the Bureau's work processes.
The Bureau of Land ManagementThe Bureau of Land Management's mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation's public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.
The Bureau manages 264 million acres of public lands-about one-eighth of the land area of the United States-and approximately 300 million additional acres of subsurface mineral estate. Most of these lands are located in the western states and Alaska. The BLM manages more public land acreage than any other federal agency, putting the Bureau in a unique position to manage and protect our Nation's priceless natural and cultural legacy.
The lands administered by the BLM are some of the most ecologically and culturally diverse and scientifically important lands in federal ownership. Among its many varied responsibilities, the Bureau is steward for:
The BLM came into being in 1946, when the Grazing Service was merged with the General Land Office to form the Bureau within the Department of the Interior. When the Bureau was initially created, there were over 2,000 unrelated and often conflicting laws for managing the public lands. The BLM had no unified legislative mandate until Congress enacted the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA).
In FLPMA, Congress recognized the value of the remaining public lands by declaring that these lands would remain in public ownership. Congress also gave us the term "multiple use" management, defined as "management of the public lands and their various resource values so that they are utilized in the combination that will best meet the present and future needs of the American people."
Increasingly, the BLM has had to address the needs of a growing and changing West. Ten of the 12 western states with significant proportions of BLM-managed lands have among the fastest rates of population growth in the United States.
The American public values balanced use, conservation, environmental management, recreation, and tourism. Public lands are increasingly viewed from the perspective of the recreational opportunities they offer, their cultural resources, and-in an increasingly urban world-their vast open spaces. However, against this backdrop, the more traditional land uses of grazing, timber production, and energy and mineral extraction are still in high demand.
The BLM's task is to recognize the demands of public land users while addressing the needs of traditional user groups and working within smaller budgets. Fortunately, the public, constituent groups, and other agencies and levels of government have proven eager to participate in collaborative decision making. These diverse partners have joined with us in developing many partnerships that benefit the public lands and everyone who relies on them.
Perhaps one of the Bureau's greatest challenges today is to develop more effective land management practices, while becoming more efficient at the same time. We and our partners have already taken significant steps to reduce administrative costs, streamline work processes, focus on customer service, and improve accountability to the American people.
As the BLM approaches the end of the 20th century, we look forward to continuing our service to the public while strengthening our partnerships with all who use or care about the public lands. Working together, all of us can succeed in maintaining the legacy of America's public lands for the use and enjoyment of both present and future generations.
Implementing the GPRA in the BureauThe BLM published its first Bureauwide Strategic Plan in 1997 as required by the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA). This Act requires that agencies set priorities and goals, determine strategies for reaching those goals, measure performance, and report on progress each year. The Bureau's Strategic Plan was developed and refined by numerous headquarters and field office employees and will guide BLM's efforts over the next 3 to 5 years.
In fiscal year 1998, we began implementing the Government Performance and Results Act throughout the agency. Using the 1997 BLM Strategic Plan, we used input from our field offices to establish long-term performance targets, resulting in a Multi-Year Performance Plan. The Multi-Year Plan's long-term targets for accomplishment resulted in annual goals and targets that are documented in BLM's Annual Performance Plans.
In February 1998, the BLM sent forward its fiscal year 1999 Annual Performance Plan to the President and Congress, setting forth the goals and performance measures that the agency will use to assess its progress. The Annual Work Plan, a yearly budgetary document, rounds out the Strategic Plan by covering operational activities and measuring daily on-the-ground activities using workload measures. The Bureau publishes its Annual Reports in February to show what the BLM has accomplished for the money it has received, following the conclusion of each fiscal year.
The Government Performance and Results Act requires agencies to revise their 5-year strategic plans at least every 3 years. Accordingly, we are preparing to revise our Strategic Plan in 1999, simplifying the structure and refining the goals. This revision will be a collective effort of the Bureau and others with whom the agency collaborates.
Evaluation to assess performance is an important aspect of complying with the Government Performance and Results Act. Responding to this need, the BLM is implementing a new approach to conducting evaluations for its offices and programs.
Based on preventing problems rather than detecting them after the fact, the new system uses two interlocking components: local self-assessment and national validation. An Implementation Team consisting of both Field and Washington Office members has embarked on the Phase 2 goal of building efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability into all of the Bureau's processes.
Evaluation teams will work to assess projected targets and actual performance on a State-by-State basis. These comparisons may highlight significant differences that are not based solely on geographic differences and local circumstances. Best performance practices can then be benchmarked and shared with others, resulting in productivity and efficiency gains over time and ensuring that the American taxpayers are receiving the best value for their money.
Annual Performance Report for 1998Studies indicate that 94.5% of the U.S. population participates in some form of outdoor recreation. These studies also reveal that the demand for recreation will continue to expand as the U.S. population increases. Visitation to BLM public lands in 1997 (the latest year for which data is available) was 61 million visits, resulting in nearly 72 million visitor days of recreation use.
The BLM public lands provide visitors with a vast array of recreational opportunities. These include hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, boating, hang gliding, off-highway vehicle driving, mountain biking, birding, and visiting natural and cultural heritage sites.
The BLM administers 205,498 miles of fishable streams, 2.2 million acres of lakes and reservoirs, 6,600 miles of floatable rivers, over 500 boating access points, 64 National Back Country Byways, and 300 Watchable Wildlife sites. The BLM also manages 4,500 miles of National Scenic, Historic, and Recreational Trails, as well as thousands of miles of multiple use trails used by motorcyclists, hikers, equestrians, and mountain bikers.
Significant accomplishments in fiscal year 1998 occurred in several areas:
The trails community has also recognized BLM's leadership as a trail provider in both the motorized and human-powered arena. Carole Genaro, a BLM volunteer from Hudson, Wyoming, received the Wyoming Trail Worker Award on November 15 at the 1998 National Trails Symposium Awards Banquet in Tucson, Arizona. Ms. Genaro was instrumental in organizing five fellow horseback riders to volunteer in evaluating over 150 miles of trail route for the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail. The evaluation of these routes was extremely valuable to the BLM in designating the on-the-ground route for this trail. At the same ceremony, Jim Mahoney, Outdoor Recreation Planner from BLM's Phoenix Field Office, received the Arizona Trail Worker Award for his work and skills on the Black Canyon Trail and the Maricopa Trail Complex.
The public lands provide myriad opportunities for commercial activities. Commercially valuable natural resources include energy and mineral commodities, forest products, grazing forage, and special uses such as rights-of-way for pipelines and transmission lines. The BLM recognizes the Nation's need for a domestic source of energy, minerals, food, timber, and fiber from the public lands.
During fiscal year 1998, the public lands produced 31 percent of the Nation's coal, 11 percent of its natural gas, and 5 percent of its oil. These lands also produce a large portion of the Nation's fertilizer minerals, mineral materials, gold, silver, and other metals. In addition to overseeing activities on the Nation's public lands, the BLM provides technical supervision of mineral development on Indian lands.
Timber production and livestock grazing are important uses of the public lands. Livestock grazing on the public lands is central to the livelihood and culture of many local communities. Among all commodities, livestock grazing has the highest indirect effect as dollars recirculate through local economies, resulting in an economic multiplier effect of 4.3 (i.e., each $1.00 of grazing value translates to $4.30 of economic benefit).
Public Land Commercial Activity |
Value FY 1998 (millions $) |
Output Impact FY 1998 (millions $) |
BLM Revenue Generated FY 1998 (millions $) |
| Oil and Gas Leasable Minerals | 6,241 | 11,483 | 787 |
| Coal Leasable Mineral | 2,826 | 7,348 | 321 |
| Other Leasable and Salable Minerals | 1,358 | 3,531 | 83 |
| Locatable Minerals* | 1,204 | 3,130 | 30 |
| Grazing | 95 | 410 | 14 |
| Timber | 107 | 365 | 72 |
| Realty | 18 | 43 | 10 |
| Total | 11,849 | 26,310 | 1,317 |
Note: Table does not include the economic value of commercial and non-commercial recreation activities on the public lands. Recreation is discussed in the previous section. * The BLM does not collect locatable minerals production data. The production value was estimated from the 1995 estimate and adjusted for production patented out of the public lands in subsequent years. | |||
Other commercial uses include rights-of-way and other permits and leases. This year over 5,000 rights-of-way actions were processed, resulting in 2,719 grants issued to companies to use public lands for roads, pipelines, transmission lines, and communication sites. Many of these provide for the basic infrastructure of society, meeting the needs of local cities and towns.
As the accompanying table shows, the estimated fiscal year (FY) 1998 market value of production occurring on the public lands was $11.8 billion, 99 percent of which was derived from energy and minerals. The direct and indirect economic impact of all commercial activities amounted to $26.3 billion. Of the total of $1.3 billion in annual revenues derived from BLM-managed lands, energy and minerals generated over $1.2 billion from mineral royalties, rents, bonuses, sales and fees. States share in a large portion of the revenues collected.
In addition to the contributions to the Nation's economy shown in the above table, significant accomplishments occurred in several areas:
Issuing permits for a mining operation involving locatable minerals (copper, lead, placer gold, etc.) is a complex procedure. There are numerous federal, state, and local permits and authorizations, all of which affect the mine operator. In Arizona, no single agency exercises overall control over the permitting processes, so no single operator, regulator, or agency had a complete picture of all the permits and approvals involved in the process.
To meet this challenge head-on, the Arizona BLM State Office used a statewide National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis to identify almost all of the permit steps needed to bring a "generic" small-scale operation onto public lands. The goal was to create uniform benchmarks and standard operating procedures to make life easier for everyone.
Developing the statewide document gave the Arizona BLM valuable knowledge of mine permitting in Arizona. The BLM then hosted a free one-day seminar in March 1998 to share their knowledge with the mine operators. Over 100 operators and members of the public attended to hear presentations by the BLM, other federal agencies, Arizona State agencies, and county officials.
This successful event supplemented another key effort by Congressman J.D. Hayworth and Arizona's State Mine Inspector, Douglas Martin: the Arizona Mining Summit. The aim of this Summit was to reduce and streamline the permitting workload on the mining industry while maintaining adequate environmental safeguards.
One of the products to come out of all of this work was a permit guide to help operators navigate the permitting process. This guide will lead to a better informed public, improved cooperation among regulators, better prepared operators, and a better designed operation. A second product was a streamlined permit determination checklist developed by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality.
Approximately 260 million board feet of timber were sold from the public lands, with most of this timber (97 percent) coming from Oregon. Sales of nontimber forest products totaled less than $1 million, but local economic impacts were probably significant.
Preserving Our Cultural HeritageThe BLM is steward for the federal government's largest, most varied, and scientifically most important body of archaeological and historical resources-an estimated 4 to 4.5 million cultural properties. These range in age from various early human occupation sites such as the 11,700-year-old Mesa Site in Alaska's Brooks Range to the remains of Spanish period exploration and settlement, and more recent historic sites documenting westward migration.
In fiscal year 1998, the Bureau continued its efforts to protect our Nation's cultural heritage by inventorying 507,491 acres for cultural resources, recording 7,687 properties, and issuing or continuing in effect a total of 570 study or management permits (excluding permits for paleontological collecting). To date, the Bureau has inventoried a total of 13.4 million acres and recorded 220,809 cultural resource properties. Of these, 248 are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with 22 listed as National Historic Landmarks, helping assure that these properties will be protected and preserved for future generations.
Noteworthy accomplishments occurred in the following specific areas:
Preserving Our Natural HeritageA total of 739 Areas of Critical Environmental Concern encompassing over 13.1 million acres have been designated nationwide on the public lands to protect important historical, cultural, scenic and natural areas or to identify areas where hazards to human life and property exist. About 7 million of these acres have been designated to protect biological resource values.
The BLM continued its stewardship of 136 Congressionally designated wilderness areas (5.2 million acres) and its management of 622 wilderness study areas (over 17 million acres). The Bureau also continued to manage 34 Wild and Scenic River segments totaling 2,038 miles, including 392 miles of the Fortymile River in Alaska, the longest designated river in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers system.
In addition, the BLM exercised stewardship responsibilities for eight National Conservation Areas (11.7 million acres), eight National Historic Trails, two National Scenic Trails, 26 National Recreation Trails, one National Scenic Area (101,000 acres), one National Recreation Area (1 million acres), 43 National Natural Landmarks (600,000 acres), 152 Research Natural Areas (347,000 acres), five World Heritage sites, three Biosphere Reserves, and two Globally Important Bird Areas (56,500 acres).
The Bureau also continued to move forward in managing the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. This Monument, which was created by Presidential Proclamation September 18, 1996, is a dramatic, multi-hued landscape that is rich in both natural and human history. Extending across 1.9 million acres of Utah public lands managed by the BLM, the Monument represents a unique combination of archaeological, historical, paleontological, geological, and biological resources.
The Bureau is working closely with state and local government officials and citizens to protect the land while allowing, within the proper conservation context, a number of traditional uses that will help keep people on the land and preserve our Western heritage. In fiscal year 1998, the BLM completed its Draft Management Plan for the Monument. In 1999, the Bureau will complete a public review period and then issue the final version of the Management Plan.
In California, federal and state officials moved forward with a deal involving acquisition of 7,500 acres of old-growth redwood forest in an area referred to as the Headwaters. The Headwaters is the largest privately held old-growth redwood forest in existence. The BLM has been designated by the Secretary of the Interior to manage the acquisition. Congress has appropriated $250 million and the California Assembly $130 million to purchase the land; finalization of the deal is anticipated in early 1999.
In fiscal year 1998, the BLM undertook several paleontological projects that resulted in the recovery of some of the most complete fossil specimens ever found, the identification of new species, and the recovery of new exhibit materials. These include:
In addition to the above field endeavors, the BLM issued its first general brochure on fossil collecting and its first paleontology program manual and handbook.
Two summers ago, Elko Field Office Archaeologist Bryan Hockett entered a long forgotten cave in northeast Nevada and stepped back nearly 50,000 years in time. What Bryan had rediscovered was a unique treas-ure that contains one of the most significant records of past plant and animal life found in the West. Much of the evidence found previously led back only about 15,000 years.
To find out what secrets the cave holds, the Elko Field Office has embarked on an effort to collect baseline information on potential paleontological, geological, and biological resources. Scientists from the Desert Research Institute, the Utah Geological Survey, and Intermountain Research have contributed their substantial knowledge of Nevada's changes in climate, vegetation, and animal life to this baseline study effort. The BLM is also working with the Northeastern Nevada Museum in Elko to establish a permanent display of the find.
"I didn't realize the importance of the find at the time," says Bryan, "because the refrigerator-like conditions in the cave-temperatures around 40 degrees Fahrenheit and humidity at 98 percent-kept the bones and seeds and even the hair of animals long extinct, extraordinarily preserved even though they were 40,000 to 50,000 years old." Now, thanks to the alertness and dedication of one BLM archaeologist, a one-of-a-kind window on the past has been opened for all of us to benefit from.
Wild Horses and BurrosMore than 44,000 wild horses and burros in 201 herd management areas roam the Western public lands; most are found in Nevada. The BLM seeks to ensure a healthy, viable population of wild horses and burros within the limits of available public land resources.
In 1998, a total of 6,389 wild horses and burros were removed from the range, while 7,844 animals were adopted through BLM's popular Adopt-A-Horse or Burro program. The remaining animals are still in our facilities awaiting adoption. The Adopt-A-Horse or Burro program is very active in the continental United States; approximately 100 adoptions are held across the country each year.
In addition, the Bureau accomplished the following:
The public lands encompass unique and unusual natural areas that provide habitat for more than 8,000 native fish, wildlife, and plant species. Many of these special habitat areas are critical for the protection and recovery of more than 350 plant and animal species that are either listed or candidates for listing under the Endangered Species Act. The BLM manages these areas in cooperation with state fish and wildlife agencies that are responsible for managing animal populations.
Examples of BLM's accomplishments in protecting special status species and their habitats include the following:
Public lands are truly Lands of Discovery; inventories for special status plants and wildlife keep turning up unexpected surprises and expanding our knowledge of species' occurrence and distribution. Recent discoveries include two previously undescribed subspecies of Arctic char in Alaska; new roosts for endangered lesser long nosed bats in Arizona; a new proposed species of sage grouse in Colorado; four state listed plants on 200 acres in the Florida panhandle; documentation of phainopepla nesting near Las Vegas, Nevada; and a nesting pair of Mexican spotted owls in a tributary canyon to the Green River in Utah, well north of their previously known distribution. Much more remains to be discovered.
The Bureau's stewardship responsibilities include protecting public lands and facilities from unauthorized uses, illegal dumping, unsafe conditions, vandalism, theft, and wildfires. These challenges are met by making prevention a priority, while also maintaining BLM's traditional level of response capability and responsiveness.
In February 1998, on the 25th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, the President formally unveiled the Administration's Clean Water Action Plan. The three major goals of the Plan are protection of public health from hazards associated with water pollution, control of polluted runoff, and improvement of water quality on a watershed basis.
BLM's primary role in implementing the Clean Water Action Plan is remediating abandoned mine lands. The Bureau's strategy is to form partnerships with states and other federal agencies to leverage funding and to target resources on state priority watersheds where former mining sites are contributing to water quality problems.
Abandoned mines can be significant sources of water pollution. During 1998, BLM continued working with states and federal agencies to leverage resources and clean up polluted watersheds:
An intense El Niño rain on July 19, 1998, washed out a diversion dike and flooded the Golden Green Placer Mine, which is located on tribal land in southern Arizona. Floodwaters ruptured a pipeline connecting two above-ground fuel tanks, causing a 3,000-gallon diesel fuel spill. The contamination covered a 10-acre area and extended over one-half mile down the drainage. Two months after the spill, the claimant had excavated the contaminated material and achieved a cleanup level of 50 parts per million on most of the site. The authorized land user, a small family-owned business, took responsibility immediately, demonstrating an outstanding land stewardship ethic and protecting public land health on behalf of all Americans.
The BLM has extensive historical and current information about land ownership, use, and condition in the United States. The agency performs cadastral surveys and produces information to support a variety of land management activities for a number of agencies. Historical data on patented lands, along with information on the mineral estate, resource conditions, and permits or leases on federal lands, is provided on a daily basis.
The BLM responds to thousands of requests for information every year and has improved customer access and use of this information. Cadastral survey information for 24,412 townships and over 2 million General Land Office (GLO) land title records have been converted to digital form and are more readily accessible to decision makers as well as the public through the use of Internet and GIS technologies.
The public is performing online Internet searches for information and subsequently downloading digital data or filing requests for historical information directly with BLM offices. As one example, the Bureau's General Land Office Records website (www.glorecords.blm.gov), during its first five months, recorded almost 400,000 visitors who looked at more than 5 million pages of records. During one week alone, visitors to this site electronically requested 500 copies of patent records from BLM's Eastern States Office. Major initiatives have been undertaken to produce and maintain this information in partnership with local and state governments, as well as other federal agencies, to ensure that consistent and accurate information is provided.
The Bureau continued to make progress in consolidating its public land records through the Automated Land and Mineral Record System (ALMRS). In addition to extensive software testing and predeployment preparation, the BLM completed the following actions in fiscal year 1998:
BLM-managed public lands generate substantial revenue from multiple use activities, much of which is returned in direct payments to the states and counties of origin. These payments are distributed to local governments to pay for such things as schools, roads, and employee salaries.
Each year, the Bureau calculates and sends the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) to counties. These payments are intended to offset property tax shortfalls (under a Congressional formula) occurring in counties with tax-exempt federal lands administered by the BLM and other agencies. In 1998, a total of $118.8 million in PILT payments were made.
Restoring and Maintaining the Health of the LandWorking with others to restore and maintain the health of the land is the foundation for everything the BLM does. Livestock grazing, timber harvesting, hunting, fishing, and other benefits from the public lands can be sustained over time only if the lands are healthy.
In managing the public lands, the BLM emphasizes actions to achieve the following conditions:
Specific accomplishments are described below for rangelands, riparian/wetlands areas, forests, and other areas. Brief background information is given, and a few examples among hundreds of BLM accomplishments are presented.
Rangeland health is described in accordance with three categories, depending on whether rangelands are meeting health standards and/or making significant progress. The accompanying charts show how BLM-managed rangelands were ranked in fiscal year 1998.
In fiscal year 1998, the BLM completed ecological site inventories on over 1 million acres. This information improves BLM's understanding of the potential for these rangelands.
Livestock grazing under permits or leases is a significant use of the public rangelands. In 1998, the BLM administered livestock grazing on more than 17,000 allotments encompassing over 160 million acres. The Bureau has developed a policy of systematically reviewing terms and conditions during permitted use or at lease renewal. This review process considers the concerns or requirements for rangeland health, other resource values, and environmental compliance. The figures shown in the accompanying charts reflect BLM's commitment to ensuring that future permitted and leased grazing on the public lands is conducted in a manner that is compatible with sustainable, healthy rangelands.
The Standards for Rangeland Health and Guidelines for Livestock Grazing Management, developed in the mid-1990s with the assistance of 24 broadly constituted Resource Advisory Councils and approved by the Secretary of the Interior, are being used in several ways. The information gained in assessing rangelands against the standards has been an important communication tool. In addition, addressing rangeland health in terms of the standards is aiding in identifying the causes of resource problems so that effective corrective actions can be taken. The guidelines serve to help identify appropriate management actions that will best meet the standards in each particular circumstance.
Additionally, they are providing a clear statement and common understanding of the expected resource conditions and acceptable management practices. This common understanding is allowing the livestock operator and BLM manager to design management practices and actions to achieve conditions on the ground that are consistent with established standards.
The Emergency Fire Rehabilitation Program responds quickly to prevent additional resource damage following wildfires on range and forest lands. In fiscal year 1998, the BLM implemented 52 emergency fire rehabilitation projects in Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and Utah to protect over 84,000 acres from degradation at a cost of over $5 million. A first-ever National Level Emergency Fire Rehabilitation Workshop attracted over 80 participants.
In its ongoing efforts to eradicate invasive weeds on our Nation's public lands, the BLM worked with its partners to accomplish the following:
Riparian areas are green vegetation zones along flowing water features such as rivers, streams, and creeks; they are reported in miles. Wetlands are areas associated with standing water features such as bogs, marshes, wet meadows, and estuaries; wetlands are reported in acres.
The BLM is restoring and maintaining forest health by reducing stocking in overly dense stands, salvaging dead and dying timber, protecting forests from insects and disease, and reintroducing fire into forest ecosystems to help restore natural conditions. Addi-tionally, measures are taken to ensure that reforestation takes place following harvesting and major disturbance events.
Reforestation (Acres) = 45,000
Forest Stand Treatments (Acres) = 35,800
One example is BLM's Arizona Strip Field Office, which is working in partnership with Northern Arizona University and the Arizona Game and Fish Department on a project on Mt. Trumbull to improve the health of the forest ecosystem by restoring ponderosa pine forests to presettlement conditions. Fire is also being reintroduced into the forest to maintain presettlement conditions and improve biological diversity. The project is in its third year, and eight restoration units (approximately 1,000 acres) have been treated or are in the process of being treated through commercial and noncommercial tree removal, prescribed burning, reseeding, or a combination of these treatments.
A second example is the Medford District in Oregon, which is continuing an aggressive program of forest health restoration. A number of projects are ongoing to reduce forest densities, reduce fuel loadings and restore tree and shrub communities. These projects have been designed in collaboration with the Applegate Partnership, a diverse community group established to help guide federal actions.
The BLM is responsible for maintaining the health of fish and wildlife habitat on public lands. The following table summarizes accomplishments for fiscal year 1998:
Listed below are a few specific examples of BLM's accomplishments, in collaboration with others, in restoring and maintaining the health of the land to benefit fish and wildlife habitat, water quality, recreational opportunities, and other resource values.
The Little Mountain Habitat Enhancement Project in southwestern Wyoming is a 200,000-acre multiyear, multi-watershed cooperative endeavor with conservation organizations, other agencies, a livestock permittee, and local landowner to improve habitats for a variety of wildlife-elk, mule deer, pronghorn antelope, birds of prey, neotropical migratory birds, and Colorado River cutthroat trout-as well as to improve livestock management. A combination of land treatments and struc-tural improvements is being used, including using prescribed fire, planting trees, fencing streams, and installing instream revetments. One indicator of the benefits is that Colorado River cutthroat populations have increased from just 7 fish per mile to 425 fish per mile.
The BLM's primary role in implementing the Clean Water Action Plan involves cleaning up water pollution associated with abandoned mine lands. This activity is described in more detail in the section entitled "Reducing Threats to Public Health, Safety, and Property."
The Blanca Wetlands, located in south-central Colorado near the border with New Mexico, have witnessed a two- to three-fold increase in visitor use, which has contributed approximately $2 million to $3 million a year to the local economy. The Blanca Wetlands provide 9,700 acres of protected wetlands, with more than 200 playa lakes, shallow ponds, and marshlands for over 200 species of fish and wildlife (including four federally listed endangered animals and one plant). The current wetlands complex supports over 14,000 breeding pairs of waterfowl, shorebirds, and neotropical migrant songbirds. The BLM has spent nearly $200,000 per year for the past 5 years on conservation and recreation efforts and has received over $500,000 in matching contributions from partner organizations.
Natural resource agencies are becoming increasingly aware of the complexities involved in public land management and the effects land use decisions have on others. Land ownership patterns in the West are fragmented. Public lands are intermingled with lands owned and managed by many others. As a result, watersheds, plant and animal populations, and human uses frequently cross jurisdictional boundaries.
We are committed to managing the land and its resources for the good of both the environment and the people who rely on resources from public lands. But we know that we cannot accomplish this in a vacuum. The Bureau's land use decisions affect adjacent landowners and state, local and tribal governments, as well as BLM administered public lands themselves. Given these realities, we are dedicated to understanding socio-economic and environmental trends, being inclusive in our planning and decision-making, and implementing on-the-ground activities in partnership with others.
To sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands, land managers need sound information about resource conditions, ecological trends, and ecosystem function. The BLM is committed to using the best scientific and technical information available to make resource management decisions and to communicating that information to its partners.
The BLM is not a research organization and must rely primarily on others to conduct basic and applied research for its use. The Bureau collaborates with others on a variety of functions and across diverse geographic areas. Information that is useful to managing the public lands is gathered by many parties, including the BLM itself; other federal agencies; state, tribal, and local governments; quasi-governmental entities such as watershed councils; land grant colleges and universities; local land users; and nongovernmental organizations such as the World Resources Institute.
In fiscal year 1998, the BLM, in collaboration with its science partners, supported and participated in numerous research projects dealing with rangeland ecosystem function and restoration, weed management, riparian improvements, minerals, threatened and endangered plant and animal species, forest ecosystem restoration, wild horse fertility and genetics, and wildfire control.
Federal environmental laws affecting the BLM, such as the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA), and the Endangered Species Act (ESA), require federal agencies to involve the public and consider the needs of local communities when making decisions. The BLM often finds it cannot act alone in preserving or restoring species or in ensuring the health of the public lands without all stakeholders, landowners and jurisdictions within a geographic area taking part.
The Secretary of the Interior has appointed community representatives to Resource Advisory Councils to advise BLM state and field offices on issues affecting the public lands. Many BLM field offices also participate in multi-jurisdictional planning efforts to address land use planning issues for areas containing a mix of public and private land ownerships and overlapping government authorities. These efforts depend on the ability of BLM employees and field managers to communicate and collaborate with user groups and the public.
In fiscal year 1998, the Bureau accomplished the following:
Environmental Education and VolunteersThe Bureau's Volunteer Program continues to be successful, making an enormous contribution to BLM's efforts and successes. Bureauwide, volunteers worked a total of 1,149,000 hours for a monetary value to the BLM of $14.4 million in fiscal year 1997 (the most recent year for which data is available).
Environmental education accomplishments include:
While BLM's primary business is to restore and maintain the health, diversity, and productivity of our Nation's public lands, accomplishing this requires strong internal business and support service functions. This includes providing accurate and timely management information, paying the bills for goods and services, managing office space, maintaining vehicles, and handling financial and budget record keeping. The BLM needs supplies, equipment, and services to fight fires, maintain campgrounds, support office staff, and perform other work. All of these tasks, and many more business functions as well, are critical to BLM's ability to do its job.
This past year, the BLM continued to implement a Management Information System that will provide all Bureau employees with financial information that is up-to-date and electronically accessible. In fiscal year 1998, the Bureau:
The financial management component will be fully operational in early fiscal year 1999.
The Bureau made significant strides in activity-based costing and management. This will allow us to measure specific costs for all of our activities (e.g., authorizing livestock grazing, leasing coal, preserving our cultural heritage, etc.) and to then analyze and control these costs, saving taxpayer dollars and helping to improve customer service. In fiscal year 1998, the BLM:
The Bureau also continued to use and develop its redesigned acquisition system, including the use of charge cards for many purchases, convenience checks for vendors who don't accept charge cards, Internet/electronic commerce and contracting, commercial item buys (instead of special orders), performance-based service contracts, and two Web-based customer service guides ("Guide to Agreements" and "Buying Made Easy Guide"). These new tools and improved business practices have enabled the BLM to work smarter, satisfy customers, increase efficiency, and obtain the best value for the taxpayers' money.
Significant strides were made in preparing the Bureau's overall finance and accounting system, the Federal Financial System (FFS), as well as other BLM automated systems, for the year 2000 (Y2K) transition. In fiscal year 1998, the Bureau converted all FFS programs and data to four-digit years and then tested this by running the old and new, converted programs using identical data inputs. Outputs from the old and new programs were then compared to ensure they were identical. In early fiscal year 1999, the BLM plans to further test all FFS programs by resetting the computer's system date to the year 2000 and then running each program with test data.
Initial steps were taken to transition to a new integrated charge card that will replace the three separate charge cards currently used for travel, purchases of supplies and equipment, and fuel and other vehicle expenses. This changeover will allow the elimination of three separate accounting and administrative systems now needed for card issuance, billing, reconciliation, review, and approval. The new charge card is providing an opportunity to completely reengineer the Bureau's credit card processes, eliminating any unnecessary steps and saving considerable time and money.
Human Resources ManagementThe fundamental viability of the public lands, and the well-being of those who use and work upon them, depends largely upon the professional skills and personal dedication of the men and women who staff the Bureau's nationwide organization. The BLM recognizes its responsibility for maintaining and protecting America's public domain, and it likewise accepts its concurrent obligation to develop and prepare those who will become its stewards in the years ahead.
The Bureau's employees are productive, efficient, and positive in their outlook. They can adapt to change and are able to anticipate and prepare for the future. BLM's diverse workforce has the skills and resources needed to get the job done now, and the organization is helping to prepare them for the future. Successes this fiscal year include the following accomplishments:
The BLM is responsible for providing cost-efficient, quality customer service. This is in keeping with initiatives such as the National Performance Review, which requires all federal agencies to take a customer-oriented approach to work processes and results.
In fiscal year 1998, the Bureau continued to implement the "Service First" program (formerly known as the "Trading Post" initiative). Under this initiative, BLM and U.S. Forest Service offices at several Colorado and Oregon locations have combined their resources and functions under one roof to more effectively and efficiently serve the public with "one-stop shopping." In addition to these "Service First" pilot efforts in Colorado and Oregon, a number of other BLM field offices have collocated with other land management agencies, with varying degrees of coordination among staffs and programs.
The Bureau completed its Electronic Reading Room on the Internet in fiscal year 1998, enabling the public to make electronic filings of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. This has allowed the Bureau to provide a faster response time for user requests. Frequently requested FOIAs, policy directives affecting the public, and frequently requested general information are now readily available on-line.
Customer research is being conducted on an ongoing basis to help us find out what is really important to our customers and partners-to recreation users, livestock operators, local government officials, and others-and to identify any barriers our own employees might face in serving customers in the field. This research will help us understand where we are now and what we need to do to improve customer service and measure the results.
The BLM continued to refine its customer research methodology and applications in fiscal year 1998 in order to strengthen its ability to work with partners and serve customers. National-level surveys were combined with local focus groups and statistical analysis to give us a clearer picture of how we are serving our customers and to highlight any areas that might require additional attention.
In fiscal year 1998, we surveyed our use-authorization customers for oil and gas, rights-of-way, land acquisitions and exchanges, grazing permits, and recreation permits. Customers voiced three common themes: "Make it simple," "Tell me who I can call if I have question," and "Keep me informed regarding ongoing changes in requirements."
The 1998 survey indicated that several programs were doing better in terms of service quality since the baseline survey in 1995. For example, the grazing permittees were 7 percentage points more satisfied with service delivery, while oil and gas lessees were 10 percentage points more satisfied with communication and coordination and 38 percentage points more satisfied with the Bureau's efforts to maintain the health of the land. However, the results also continued to point to needed improvements in process efficiency; the management of new regulatory releases and updates; and communication among BLM employees, customers, and the communities adjacent to public lands.
When asked for one improvement they would make, customers overwhelmingly expressed the desire for us to simplify their processes and to communicate more on the health of the land, together with other current issues surrounding their permit or application. The BLM's Executive Leadership Team met in mid-November 1998 to examine the survey results and plans to develop solutions over the course of fiscal year 1999.