BLM-Alaska Announces the Delta River Special Recreation Management Area Approved Plan

Glennallen, Alaska – The Bureau of Land Management in Alaska is pleased to release the Finding of No Significant Impact, Decision Record (DR) and Approved Plan for the Delta River Special Recreation Management Area (SRMA) and East Alaska Resource Management Plan Amendment (Approved Plan). This document will provide guidance for the recreational management of the Delta River SRMA for the next 15-20 years.

 

The Approved Plan is designed to provide for a mix of river recreation uses and users, while managing to protect the environment and Outstandingly Remarkable Values (ORV). It maintains a setting that supports diverse recreational opportunities; integrates resource protection with an appropriate range of visitor uses; contributes economically to local communities; provides multi-resource standards and direction found in other legislation, policies, or management plans designed to comply with applicable state and federal laws; and provides protection of the river’s scenic, cultural, wildlife, fisheries, and recreational ORVs.

 

The plan should minimize social conflicts and protect river resources through management direction that provides a strong emphasis in education and interpretive outreach. It calls for the establishment of adaptive management standards that are based on river user tolerances for different impacts. Monitoring and non-compliance with standards will drive implementation of management actions; in most cases, less-restrictive measures will be implemented prior to more-restrictive actions.

 

Bud Cribley, BLM-Alaska State Director commented, “I am especially pleased and grateful for all the participating stakeholders and general public who came together for this 7 year planning process. They opened up for consideration all the known issues, competing interests, opinions, and values of the public for inclusion in this plan.”

 

Copies of the Delta River SRMA Decision Record, Finding of No Significant Impact, and Approved Plan are available for viewing on the BLM Alaska Planning website at: http://www.blm.gov/ak/st/en/prog/planning.html. For members of the public that lack computer access, contact the BLM Glennallen Field Office by calling (907) 822-3217.
To view the Federal Register Notice, Click here:  https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/07/01/2013-15681/notice-of-availability-of-the-decision-record-for-the-delta-river-special-recreation-management-area

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BLM, Tribes Continue Dialogue on Hydraulic Fracturing Rule

Building on the eight outreach sessions held last year with Tribal communities and the 22 formal one-one-one tribal consultations, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has scheduled two additional regional outreach meetings with Tribal representatives to discuss how the Bureau’s proposed hydraulic fracturing rule would strengthen oil and gas operations on Indian trust lands.

The announcement of the meetings – planned for June 18 in Dickinson, ND, and June 20 in Farmington, NM – comes in conjunction with the publication of a revised proposed rule on hydraulic fracturing on public and Indian lands on May 24 in Federal Register.

Following the release of an initial draft proposal in 2012, Interior received extensive feedback, including over 177,000 public comments as well as suggestions from Indian tribes that helped inform the updated draft proposal.  The new proposal maintains important safety standards, improves integration with existing state and tribal standards, and increases flexibility for oil and gas operators.  The updated draft proposal is subject to a new 90-day public comment period, which ends on August 23, 2013.

“For more than a year, the BLM and many Indian tribes have engaged in a dialogue – both through regional meetings and government-to-government consultation – in which many clear and valid points were made about what a hydraulic fracturing rule needs to do,” said BLM Principal Deputy Director Neil Kornze.

“We believe the revised rule enables us to meet our trust responsibilities for oil and gas development on Indian lands, while recognizing issues such as sovereignty, economic development, and water rights,” Kornze said.

The Indian Mineral Leasing Act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, who oversees the BLM, to administer the oil and gas leasing program under regulations specific to Indian trust lands, in an effort to provide the same protections to these lands that are accorded to public lands.

Last year, the BLM held eight separate outreach sessions for Tribal communities in addition to 22 formal one-to-one Tribal consultations.

At this year’s regional meetings, BLM staff will present background information regarding hydraulic fracturing, explain the current provisions of the rule, and how it was revised to address tribal concerns.   The program will also include time to answer questions and take suggestions.

The revised rule supports the Obama Administration’s all-of-the-above commitment and approach to American energy by expanding domestic oil and gas production in order to further American energy self-reliance, while remaining focused on ensuring safe and responsible development on public and Indian lands.

Approximately 90 percent of wells drilled on Federal and Indian lands use hydraulic fracturing, but the BLM’s current regulations governing hydraulic fracturing operations on public and Indian lands are more than 30 years old and were not written to address modern hydraulic fracturing activities. The revised proposed rule will modernize BLM’s management of hydraulic fracturing operations, and help to establish baseline environmental safeguards for these operations across all public and Indian lands.

The updated draft proposal maintains the three main components of the initial proposal: requiring operators to disclose the chemicals they use in fracturing activities on public lands; improving assurances of well-bore integrity to verify that fluids used during fracturing operations are not contaminating groundwater; and confirming that oil and gas operators have a water management plan in place for handling fluids that flow back to the surface.

Representatives of tribes with interests in oil and gas development are invited to attend one of the following two meetings:

– June 18, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Ramada Grand Dakota Lodge and Conference Center, 532 15th Street West, Dickinson, ND, 58601. Reservations: 800-422-0949 (a limited number of rooms at a conference rate are available).

– June 20, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

San Juan Community College, Computer Science Building Lecture Hall, 4601 College Blvd., Farmington, NM, 87402. Information: Patrick Papich, BLM Farmington Field Office, 505-320-5161.

BLM-Alaska Releases Draft Determination of NEPA Adequacy and Map for the NPR-A Lease Sale

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Anchorage—The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released a draft Determination of NEPA Adequacy (DNA) to document the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance and a map of available tracts for the upcoming NPR-A Oil and Gas Lease Sale.  The draft determination and map link will be posted to the BLM-Alaska website at http://www.blm.gov/ak. 

On June 21, 2011, the BLM published a Call for Nominations and Comments in the Federal Register.  The notice included all lands in the Northeast and Northwest NPR-A planning areas that were not currently leased or deferred from leasing.  The Call for Nominations and Comment period ended July 21, 2011. 

In selecting tracts, the BLM evaluated the information received and considered natural resource information, multiple-use conflicts, resource potential, industry interest, and subsistence values.

BLM will submit the Notice of Sale to publish in the Federal Register at least 30 days prior to the sale, scheduled for late this year.  This will be the seventh oil and gas lease sale since 1999.

The lease sale is being conducted in response to President Barack Obama’s May 14, 2011, announcement directing the Department of the Interior to conduct annual oil and gas lease sales in the NPR-A. 

The public may comment on the draft DNA by sending comments to: NPR-A Draft DNA Lease Sale Comment; Attn: Jim Ducker; 222 W. 7th Ave. Ste. 13; Anchorage, Alaska, 99513-7504 or through the BLM-Alaska website. Comments must be received by October 21, 2011. 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.