Record of decision and Green River resource management plan

238 Pages·1997·54.7 MB·English

by  United States. Bureau of Land Management. Green River Resource Area

U.S. Department ofthe Interior
BureauofLandManagement
RockSpringsDistrictOffice
Green RiverResourceArea October1997
Record of Decision
and
Green River Resource Management Plan
bLM LIBRARY
SLDG 50, ST-16QA
DERALCENTER
P.O. BOX 25047
DENVER, COLORADO 80225
TheBureauofLandManagementisresponsibleforthebalancedmanagementofthepubliclandsand
resourcesandtheirvariousvaluessothattheyareconsideredinacombinationthatwillbestservethe
needsoftheAmericanpeople. Managementisbasedupontheprinciplesofmultipleuseandsustained
yield;acombinationofusesthattakeintoaccountthelongtermneedsoffuturegenerationsforrenewable
andnonrenewableresources. Theseresourcesincluderecreation,range,timber,minerals,watershed,
fishandwildlife,wildernessandnatural,scenic,scientificandculturalvalues.
BLM/WY/PL-97/027+1610
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
RECORDOFDECISIONfortheGREENRIVERRESOURCEMANAGEMENT
PLANENVIRONMENTALIMPACTSTATEMENT ROD-1
DECISION ROD-1
WILDERNESSSTUDYAREAS ROD-1
SPECIALMANAGEMENTAREADESIGNATIONS ROD-1
AreasofCriticalEnvironmentalConcern ROD-1
SpecialRecreationManagementAreas ROD-2
PROTESTS ROD-2
DEFERREDDECISIONSINTHESTEAMBOATMOUNTAIN,ANDGREATER
SANDDUNESACECSANDADJOININGAREAS ROD-4
ALTERNATIVES ROD-5
AlternativesConsideredinDetail ROD-5
AlternativesandManagementOptionsEliminatedfromDetailedStudy ROD-5
TheSelectedPlan ROD-5
PUBLICPARTICIPATIONANDCONSISTENCY ROD-6
MONITORINGANDEVALUATION ROD-6
PUBLICAVAILABILITYOFTHISDOCUMENT ROD-7
RECORDOFDECISIONandAPPROVEDRESOURCEMANAGEMENT
PLANfortheGREENRIVERRESOURCEAREA ROD-9
ABBREVIATIONS
1
GREENRIVERRESOURCEMANAGEMENTPLAN 3
INTRODUCTION
3
AIRQUALITYMANAGEMENT 3
CULTURAL,NATURALHISTORY,ANDPALEONTOLOGICALRESOURCEMANAGEMENT 4
HistoricTrails 4
CongressionallyDesignatedHistoricTrailsandAssociatedHistoricSites 4
OtherHistoricTrailsandHistoricSites 4
RockArtSites 5
OtherSites 5
OtherCulturalandPaleontologicalManagementActions 6
FIREMANAGEMENT 7
FORESTSANDWOODLANDSMANAGEMENT 7
HAZARDOUSMATERIALSANDOTHERHAZARDS 8
LANDSANDREALTYMANAGEMENT 9
LandOwnershipAdjustment 9
Utility/TransportationSystems 9
Withdrawals/Classifications 10
DesertLandEntries 10
Access 10
LIVESTOCKGRAZINGMANAGEMENT 10
MINERALSMANAGEMENT
11
LeasableMinerals 12
FluidLeasables(OilandGas) 12
FluidLeasables(Geothermal) 12
SolidLeasables(Coal) 13
AreasofBLM-AdministeredPublicLandSurfaceOverlyingState-OwnedCoal 14
PreferenceRight(Coal)LeaseApplications(PRLAs) 14
SolidLeasables(Sodium/Trona) 14
OtherLeasables 14
CONTENTS
SaleableMinerals 14
LocatableMinerals 15
GeophysicalF.xploration 15
OFF-ROADVEHICLEMANAGEMENT 15
RECREATIONRESOURCEMANAGEMENT 16
WindRiverFrontSpecialRecreationManagementArea 17
EasternUnit 17
WesternUnit 18
SPECIALSTATUSSPECIESMANAGEMENT 19
Candidate,Sensitive,andThreatenedandEndangeredPlantSpeciesManagement 19
VEGETATIONMANAGEMENT 19
RiparianVegetationManagementActions 20
VISUALRESOURCEMANAGEMENT 21
WATERSHED/SOILSMANAGEMENT 21
WILDHORSEMANAGEMENT 23
WILDERNESSRESOURCEMANAGEMENT 23
WILDLIFEMANAGEMENT 24
SPECIALDESIGNATIONMANAGEMENTAREAS 25
Introduction 25
ActionsthatApplytotheEntireACEC 27
ActionsUniquetotheSageCreekWatershed 28
ActionsUniquetotheCurrantCreekWatershed 28
ActionsUniquetotheRedCreekWatershed 28
GeneralArea 29
AdditionalorDifferentItemsSpecifictotheWesternPortionoftheGreaterSandDunesArea 29
AdditionalorDifferentItemsSpecifictotheEasternPortionoftheGreaterSandDunesArea 30
CrookstonRanchandBoarsTusk 31
DeferredDecisionsintheEasternPortionoftheGreaterSandDunesArea 31
NaturalCorralsACEC 31
OregonButtesACEC 32
PineSpringsACEC 32
SouthPassHistoricLandscapeACEC 33
SteamboatMountainACEC 35
DeferredDecisionsintheSteamboatMountainACEC 35
ConsiderationstobeAddressedinDevelopingtheCAP 36
WhiteMountainPetroglyphsACEC 36
OtherManagementAreas 37
MonumentValleyManagementArea 37
PineMountainManagementArea 37
ManagementActionsUniquetotheFourJBasinPortionofthePineMountainManagementArea 39
RedDesertWatershedManagementArea 39
SugarloafBasinManagementArea 40
ManagementofBLM-AdministeredPublicLandsThatMeettheWildand
ScenicRiversSuitabilityFactors 41
GLOSSARY 45
BIBLIOGRAPHY 55
CONTENTS
Tables
TABLE - LANDANDMINERALOWNERSHIPSANDADMINISTRATIVE
1
JURISDICTIONSWITHINTHEGREENRIVERRMPPLANNINGAREA 58
TABLE2 - RIGHTS-OF-WAYAVOIDANCEANDEXCLUSIONAREAS 59
TABLE3 - WITHDRAWALSREVOKEDORRETAINED 60
TABLE4 - WITHDRAWALSTOBEPURSUED 61
TABLE5 - ESTIMATEDANNUALALLOWABLECUT 61
TABLE6 - ACCESSNEEDS 62
TABLE7 - AREASOFOILANDGASLEASERESTRICTIONSBYHYDRO-
CARBONPOTENTIAL 63
TABLE8 - SEASONALRESTRICTIONSFORALLSURFACEDISTURBANCEACTIVITIES 65
TABLE9 - AREASCLOSEDTOCOALEXPLORATIONANDSODIUMPROSPECTING 66
TABLE 10 - SUMMARYDESCRIPTIONOFCOALSCREENINGPROCESSRESULTS
ANDCOALMANAGEMENTACTIONS 67
TABLE 11 - AREASCLOSEDTOMINERALMATERIALSALES 68
TABLE 12 - AREASCLOSEDTOGEOPHYSICALVEHICLES&EXPLOSIVECHARGES 69
TABLE 13 - ORVDESIGNATIONS 70
TABLE 14 - VRMCLASSES 73
TABLE 15 - WILDHORSEAPPROPRIATEMANAGEMENTLEVELS 73
Figures
Figure 1 - PlanningProcess 74
Figure2 - UnplannedIgnitionsFireDecisionChart 75
Maps
MapROD-l - JackMorrowHillsCAPArea ROD-8
Map 1 - GeneralLocation 77
Map 2 - OtherAgencyAdministeredLand 78
Map 3 - SelectCulturalResourceSitesandHistoricTrails 79
Map 4 - FireManagement 80
Map 5 - TimberCompartments 81
Map 6 - LandTenureAdjustmentParcels 82
Map 7 - Rights-of-WayExclusionAreas 83
Map 8 - Rights-of-WayAvoidanceAreas 84
Map 9 - Rights-of-WayWindowsandCommunicationSites 85
Map 10 - ExistingWithdrawals 86
Map 11 - PublicWaterReserves 87
Map 12 - RoadAccessNeeds 88
Map 13 - NoLeaseAreas 89
Map 14 - NoSurfaceOccupancyAreas 90
Map 15 - BigGameCrucialWinterRangesandParturitionAreas 91
Map 16 - SageGrouseSeasonalRestrictionAreas 92
Map 17 - RaptorSeasonalRestrictionAreas 93
Map 18 - LeasewithControlledSurfaceUseStipulations 94
Map 19 - Coal/SodiumPotential 95
Map20 - Off-RoadVehicleDesignations 96
1
CONTENTS
Maps (continued)
Map21 - RecreationUseAreas 97
Map22 - SpecialRecreationManagementAreas 98
Map23 - SpecialStatusPlantSpecies 99
Map24 - VisualResourceManagement 100
Map25 - WatersandFloodplains 101
Map26 - AreasofHydrologicConcern 102
Map27 - WildHorseHerdManagementAreas 103
Map28 - WildernessStudyAreas 104
Map29 - SouthPassHistoricLandscape 105
Map30 - SweetwaterRiver-PotentiallySuitableforWildandScenicRiverConsideration 106
Map31 - CoalDevelopmentPotentialArea 128
Map32 - CoalScreeningProcess: UnsuitableAreas 129
Map33 - CoalScreeningProcess: AlternativeB 130
Map34 - CoalScreeningProcess: AlternativeC 131
Map35 - CoalScreeningProcess: AcceptableforSubsurfaceMiningOnly 132
Map36 - CoalScreeningProcess: AcceptableForCoalMiningwithAppropriateMitigation 133
Map37 - CoalScreeningProcess: UnsuitableandUnacceptableAreas 134
MapA - LandStatus,ACECs.andOtherManagementAreas Pocket
Appendices
APPENDIX1 - ACECCRITERIA 107
APPENDIX2 - WYOMINGBUREAUOFLANDMANAGEMENT(BLM)MITIGATIONGUIDE.... 11
APPENDIX3 - 1995COALSCREENINGPROCESSSUMMARY 115
APPENDIX4-1 - IDENTIFICATIONANDCLASSIFICATIONOFBLM-ADMINISTERED
PUBLICLANDSWITHINTHEGREENRIVERRESOURCEMANAGEMENTPLAN
PLANNINGAREADETERMINEDTOMEETTHEWILDANDSCENICRIVERS
ELIGIBILITYCRITERIA 135
APPENDIX4-2 - WILDANDSCENICRIVERSSUITABILITYREVIEWOFBLM-
ADMINISTEREDPUBLICLANDSALONGTHEREDCREEKUNIT,CURRANTCREEK
UNIT,PACIFICCREEK,NORTHFORKOFBEARCREEK,CANYONCREEK,THE
SWEETWATERRIVER,THEBIGSANDYRIVER,ANDTHEGREENRIVERINTHE
GREENRIVERRESOURCEMANAGEMENTPLANPLANNINGAREA 153
APPENDIX5-1 - STANDARDPRACTICES,BESTMANAGEMENTPRACTICES,
ANDGUIDELINESFORSURFACEDISTURBINGACTIVITIES 157
APPENDIX5-2 - ENVIRONMENTALANALYSISANDMITIGATIONOFOILAND
GASDEVELOPMENTANDOTHERSURFACEDISTURBINGACTIVITIES 163
APPENDIX5-3 - EROSIONCONTROL,REVEGETATION,ANDRESTORATIONPLAN(ERRP)... 165
APPENDIX6 - GENERALCULTURALPRESCRIPTIONS 167
APPENDIX7 - PROCEDURESFORPROCESSINGAPPLICATIONSINAREAS
OFSEASONALRESTRICTION 169
APPENDIX8-1 - LANDSIDENTIFIEDASPOSSIBLYSUITABLEFORDISPOSAL 171
APPENDIX8-2 - DISPOSALCRITERIA 173
APPENDIX8-3 - ACQUISITIONSTOBEPURSUEDWITHWILLINGPARTIESONLY 175
APPENDIX9-1 - ALLOTMENTMONITORINGANDCATEGORIES 177
CONTENTS
Appendices (continued)
APPENDIX9-2 - STANDARDOPERATINGPROCEDURESFORRANGEIMPROVEMENTS
ANDVEGETATIONMANIPULATIONS 179
APPENDIX9-3 - STANDARDSFORHEALTHYRANGELANDSANDGUIDELINES
FORLIVESTOCK GRAZINGMANAGEMENTFORPUBLICLANDSADMINISTERED
BYTHEBUREAUOFLANDMANAGEMENTINTHESTATEOFWYOMING 183
APPENDIX9-4 - RESOURCEMONITORINGANDEVALUATION ALLOTMENTS 189
APPENDIX10-1 - BIOLOGICALASSESSMENT 191
APPENDIX10-2 - BIOLOGICALOPINION 213

RECORD OF DECISION
for the
GREEN RIVER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT
DECISION
ThedecisionistoselectandapprovetheattachedGreenRiverResourceManagementPlan(RMP),toguide
thefuturemanagementofthepubliclandsandresourcesadministeredbytheBureauofLandManagement
(BLM),intheGreenRiverResourceArea. TheGreenRiverRMPsupersedesallpreviousland-useplanning
decision documents forthe Green River Resource Area. The Green RiverRMPwas prepared underthe
regulations(43CFR1600)forimplementingthelanduseplanningrequirementsoftheFederalLandPolicyand
ManagementAct(FLPMA). Anenvironmental impactstatement(EIS)waspreparedfortheGreenRiverRMP
incompliancewiththeNationalEnvironmentalPolicyActof1969(NEPA). AcopyoftheEnvironmental
ImpactStatement(EIS)fortheGreenRiverRMPisonfileintheGreenRiverResourceAreaOffice.
ThedecisionsintheGreenRiverRMPprovidegeneralmanagementdirectionandallocationofusesforthe
BLM-administeredpubliclandsandresourcesintheplanningarea. TheselectionandapprovaloftheGreen
RiverRMPisbasedupontheanalysisofenvironmentalimpactsoffouralternativemanagementplans,public
comments,andconsultationwithfederal,state,andlocalgovernmentsandagencies,andupontheconsideration
of5 planning issues: 1) minerals resource management and rights-of-way; 2) land tenure adjustment and
resourceaccessibility;3)resourceusesaffectingvegetation,soils,air,andwatershedvalues;4)recreationand
culturalresourcemanagement;and5)specialmanagementareas.
TheattachedGreenRiverRMPistheproposedRMPpresentedintheGreenRiverRMPFinalEIS,published
inApril, 1996,withminorcorrectionoferrorsandwordingclarification. TheGreenRiverRMPprovidesa
balancebetweenproductionandcommodityuseswithprotectionoftheenvironment. ItrepresentstheBLM's
preferredmanagementplanalternativefortheGreenRiverResourceAreaandoneoftheenvironmentally
preferredalternatives,intermsofminimizingenvironmentalimpactsandguidingtheusesofthepubliclands
intheresourcearea. ThisalternativebestmeetstheBureau'sstatutorymissionundertheFederalLandPolicy
andManagementAct,andidentifiesactionstoprotectresourcesandtoavoidorminimizeenvironmentalharm
whileallowingforcommodityuses. AlternativeCoftheEIS,whichwouldplacemorerestrictionsonlanduses
thantheapprovedRMP,alsoqualifiesasanenvironmentallypreferredalternative.
WILDERNESS STUDYAREAS
TheBureau'srecommendationstotheSecretaryoftheInterioronWildernessStudyAreas(WSAs)inthe
GreenRiverResourceAreahavebeenmadeunderseparatedocumentation. Theseareaswereaddressedin
separateWildernessEISandWildernessreportdocumentswhicharealsoonfileintheGreenRiverResource
AreaOffice. ThedecisionsregardingwildernessareadesignationsaremadebyCongress. WhenCongress
makestheWildernessdecisionsfortheWSAsintheGreenRiverResourceArea,theywillbeincorporatedinto
theGreenRiverRMP.
SPECIALMANAGEMENTAREADESIGNATIONS
Thereareuniqueandimportantareas,values,orresourcesonBLM-administeredlandswithintheGreen
River Resource Area that meet the criteria for protection and management under special management
designations.
AreasofCritical EnvironmentalConcern
ThefollowingdesignationsforAreasofCriticalEnvironmentalConcern(ACEC)areretained(ormodified)
orestablished. TheACECdesignationsapplyonlytoBLM-administeredpubliclandsurface.
ROD-1
RECORDOFDECISION
PriorACEC DesignationsRetained(orModified):
CedarCanyonACEC (approximately2,550acres)
GreaterRedCreekACEC (approximately131,890acres-originallyRedCreekACEC,expandedfrom55,880
acrestoincluderelevantandimportantvaluesintheCurrantCreekandSageCreekDrainages)
GreaterSandDunesACEC (approximately38,650acres)
NaturalCorralsACEC (approximately 1,276acres)
OregonButtesACEC (approximately3.450acres)
PineSpringsACEC (approximately6,030acres,expandedfrom90acrestoincludeadjacentrelevantand
importantvalues)
WhiteMountainPetroglyphsACEC (approximately20acres).
NewACECDesignations:
SouthPassACEC (approximately53,780acres)
SpecialStatus(Candidate)PlantsACEC (approximately900acres)
SteamboatMountainACEC (approximately43,270acres).
SpecialRecreationManagementAreas
The BLM-administeredpubliclandsin sixareasaredesignatedSpecial Recreation ManagementAreas
(SRMAs). TheseSRMAsaretheKillpeckerSandDunes,theOregonandMormonPioneerNationalHistoric
Trails,theContinental Divide National ScenicTrail, theContinental Divide SnowmobileTrail,the Green
River,andtheWindRiverFront. TheremainderoftheBLM-administeredpubliclandsintheGreenRiver
ResourceAreaaredesignatedanExtensiveRecreationManagementArea(ERMA)(seeMap22).
PROTESTS
Eightprotestsweresubmittedduringthe30-dayprotestperiodfortheProposedGreenRiverRMP. Allof
the protests were respondedtoand resolved by the Directorofthe Bureau ofLand Management (BLM).
Resolutionoftheprotests requiredsome minorcorrections andwordingclarificationbutdidnotresult in
changinganyoftheproposedGreenRiverRMPdecisions.
FouradditionallettersweresubmittedtotheDirectorduringtheprotestperiod.Theselettersweresubmitted
bypartieswhoeitherhadnotparticipatedintheplanningprocessandhadnostandingtosubmitprotests,did
not protest a proposed decision in the proposed plan, or simply asked for clarification and information.
ResponsestotheconcernsraisedintheseletterswereprovidedeitherbytheDirectorortheWyomingBLM
StateDirector.
TheRockSpringsGrazingAssociationsubmittedaprotest(1)objectingtothepotentialBLMacquisition
of44squaremilesofnon-FederallandinSweetwaterCounty(whichappearedtoincludemany"livewaters"
onprivateandstateadministeredlands), withoutanymaterialanalysis; (2)statingthatthe BLM madeno
analysisoftheeffectsoftheProposedRMPontheadjacentprivatelandsasaresultofdesignatingandmanaging
ACECs;and(3)statingthatsubstantialchangesweremadebetweenthedraftEISfortheRMPandthefinalEIS
fortheRMP(differencesbetweenthepreferredplaninthedraftEISandtheproposedplaninfinalEISwere
alsoaprotestissuewiththeWyomingStateGrazingBoard,andtheWyomingOutdoorCouncil).
TheWyomingStateGrazingBoard,GaryZakotnik,BigSandyConservationDistrict,VermillionRanch
LimitedPartnership,andThomanRanchprotestedportionsoftheproposedRMPrelatingtolivestockgrazing
issues. TheThomanRanchalsoprotestedportionsoftheproposedRMPrelatingtowildhorsesandcandidate
plantspecies.
TheNationalWildlifeFederationsubmittedaproteststatingthattheproposedRMP(1)didnotincorporate
thenewregulatoryprioritiesforprotectingthefundamentalsofrangelandhealth,thatitsetthelevelsoflivestock
grazingtoohigh,andthatitinappropriatelyprovidedthatrangelandmonitoringmustbecompletedbefore
ROD-2