Dillon BLM releases Red Rock-Lima watershed report
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(DILLON, Mont.) – The Red Rock/ Lima Watershed Assessment, the result of many months of work by specialists in the Bureau of Land Management’s Dillon Field Office, is now ready for public comment.
The Red Rock/Lima watershed is in Beaverhead County, south of Dillon along I-15 to the Continental Divide. The watershed covers approximately 69,000 acres of BLM-administered land in 28 grazing allotments. There are approximately 400 acres within the watershed that are un-allotted.
The field office welcomes public comments to help formulate alternatives and define issues for the environmental assessment, which begins early this year. To be most helpful, public comments should be submitted by Jan. 31.
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment – including your personal identifying information – may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. The watershed assessment report has been mailed to individuals who have expressed interest in the projects and asked to be on the mailing list.
To receive a copy of the watershed assessment report, call the Dillon Field Office at (406) 683-8000, or email MT_Dillon_FO@blm.gov.
The assessment report is also available online at the Bureau’s ePlanning webpage.
In preparing the assessment from last summer’s field work, the field office evaluated the watershed’s resources according to the five standards for rangeland health. These standards include maintaining properly functioning upland and riparian resources, air and water quality to meet state standards, and providing for biodiversity including forest health and fuel conditions. As stewards, the BLM manages public lands for the benefit of current and future generations, supporting conservation as it pursues its multiple-use mission.
National Environmental Policy Act documents will be prepared to analyze alternatives for revising management where resource concerns were found within the watershed. The NEPA document will be completed by resource specialists from the Dillon Field Office in coordination with grazing permittees/lessees, other agencies, and members of the public.
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.