Winnemucca District Office
| Contacts: | Lisa Ross | , 775-623-1500 | , lisa_ross@blm.gov |
BLM Issues Temporary Closures for Burning Man
Winnemucca, Nev. – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Winnemucca District Office announced in the Federal Register on August 5, 2009 temporary closures and the prohibition of certain activities on public lands immediately surrounding the site of the 2009 Burning Man event. The closures and prohibitions are necessary to provide for public safety and to protect public resources.
The closures affect a small part of the Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area (NCA) Black Rock Desert playa between August 3 and September 18. According to Black Rock Field Office Manager Dave Hays, “Similar closures for the Burning Man event in past years have been implemented with minimal disruption to other public uses.”
The closures reserve the 8-Mile entrance to the Black Rock Desert playa solely for Burning Man ticket holders, but all other playa access points and 93 percent of the playa, more than 97,000 acres, remains open to public use.
The closure order is posted on the web at www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/fo/wfo.html. Questions may be directed to Dave Hays at dave_hays@blm.gov, or call 775-623-1500.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Winnemucca District Office 5100 E Winnemucca Blvd. Winnemucca, NV 89445