BLM seeks public input on proposed communications site in San Bernardino County
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NEEDLES, Calif. – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Needles Field Office is seeking input on an environmental assessment for a proposed communications site in San Bernardino County, approximately 10 miles north of Needles near Interstate 40 and U.S. Highway 95. The public comment period, which begins today, will close on August 2.
InterConnect Towers, LLC has submitted several proposals for communication sites located on lands managed by the Needles Field Office. So far three of these proposals have been approved. Each site consists of a 196-foot-tall lattice signal tower; a single multiple-room building capable of holding up to five communications vendors; up to three 1,000-gallon propane tanks; and two 35-kW generators situated on a 50-foot concrete pad.
The BLM is committed to supporting improved broadband infrastructure that increases the First Responder Network’s ability to provide public safety communications. Executive Order 13821, “Streamlining and Expediting Requests to Locate Broadband Facilities in Rural America,” directs federal agencies to reduce barriers to capital investment, remove obstacles to broadband service, and more efficiently employ government resources to foster rural broadband infrastructure.
The environmental assessment can be viewed online at https://tinyurl.com/y5gla3rn. Public comments may be submitted by mail to William Webster, Needles Field Office, 1303 S. Highway 95, Needles, CA 92363; by email to wwebster@blm.gov; or by fax to 760-326-7099. For more information about this project, contact William Webster at 760-326-7008.
The Department of the Interior, through its various bureaus and agencies, is responsible for the permitting of communications sites and transmission lines on nearly 500 million acres of federal lands. For more information on DOI’s broadband initiatives, please visit https://www.doi.gov/broadband.
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.