BLM and USFS issue preliminary decisions on large-scale grazing management project in northern Utah
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SALT LAKE CITY-- The Bureau of Land Management Salt Lake Field Office and the Ogden Ranger District of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest (USFS) released the BLM’s Proposed Decision and USFS’s Draft Decision Notice for the Three Creeks Allotment Consolidation Project. In conjunction, with the decisions, the agencies released an environmental assessment (EA) and Findings of No Significant Impact (FONSI).
The project represents a joint effort to consolidate 10 grazing allotments on BLM and USFS-managed lands in Cache and Rich counties into a single, livestock grazing allotment system with 31 individual pastures. The project area also encompasses lands owned by the State of Utah and managed by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, and lands owned by private entities.
“This grazing system is designed to improve resource conditions by maximizing periods during which the pastures will be rested, as well as ensuring that pastures are grazed during different plant growth periods from year to year”, said Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest Supervisor Dave Whittekiend.
Proposed by the livestock operators and Rich County Commission of Utah, the project was developed collaboratively with the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food – Grazing Improvement Program and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
“The Three Creeks project is an outstanding example of local, state, and federal agencies, working across ownership boundaries to better manage public lands, improve rangeland health, and support multiple uses of public lands,” said BLM West Desert District Manager Kevin Oliver.
The released documents initiate the agencies’ protest and objection periods:
- The release of the EA and BLM Proposed Decision initiated a 15-day BLM protest period ending in early January. More information regarding the protest period and Proposed Decision can be found at: https://go.usa.gov/xnb7T. The BLM also released its rangeland health determination, which can also be found on this website.
- A legal notice was published to the Ogden Standard Examiner, which initiated the USFS’s 45-day objection period. Anyone who provided specific written comments on the EA during either the scoping period or the comment period may file an objection with the USFS Intermountain Regional Office in Ogden by Jan. 29, 2018. The Draft Decision and other project-related documents can be found at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=36707.
For additional information about the project or the protest and objection periods, please contact BLM Salt Lake Field Manager Matt Preston at (801) 977-4300, or USFS Ogden District Ranger Sean Harwood at (801) 625-5872. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf may call the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339 to leave a message or ask a question. The FRS is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Replies are provided during normal business hours.
- BLM & USFS -
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The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.