BLM Rock Springs and Rawlings schedule public meetings and extend scoping on wild horse management

 

August 27, 2013
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will host public scoping meetings from 4-7 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Rock Springs Field Office, 280 Highway 191 N., Rock Springs, Wyo.; and Sept. 12 at the Rawlins Field Office, 1300 N. Third St., Rawlins, Wyo., to address wild horse and burro management for the Rock Springs and Rawlins Resource Management Plans (RMPs).

The scoping period for the RMP revisions will also be extended to Sept. 27 to allow adequate time for public comment. The scoping meetings will provide an opportunity for the public and interested parties to ask questions one-on-one with BLM specialists, view maps and posters detailing the RMP revision process, and provide written comments.

The BLM is seeking public input in analyzing the environmental impacts of implementing the April 3 consent decree governing wild horse management in the checkerboard pattern of mixed public, private, and state land ownership in southern Wyoming. Under the consent decree, the BLM agrees to remove all wild horses from the Rock Springs Grazing Association’s (RSGA) private lands. RSGA owns or leases more than 48 percent of the private land in four herd management areas (HMAs) in the checkerboard within the boundaries of the Rawlins and Rock Springs field offices. Wild horse management, including HMA boundaries which encompass RSGA lands and appropriate management levels (AMLs), will be reviewed and reanalyzed.

Written comments will be accepted until Sept. 27.

Comments may be emailed to BLM_WY_RockSpringsRMP@blm.gov (please include “Wild Horse Scoping” in the subject line), faxed to (307) 352-0329, or mailed to the Bureau of Land Management, Rock Springs Field Office, Wild Horse Scoping, 280 Highway 191 N., Rock Springs, WY 82901.

Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to contact the individuals listed below during normal business hours. The FIRS is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question with the below individuals. You will receive a reply during normal business hours.

Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, be advised that your entire comment – including your personal identifying information – may be made publicly available at any time. While you may ask us in your comment to withhold from public review your personal identifying information, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

For further information, please contact Jay D’Ewart at (307) 352-0331, or William West at (307) 352-0259.

Note to editor: A link to the planning documents can be found at www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/programs/Planning/rmps/RockSprings.html.

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The BLM’s multiple-use mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. In Fiscal Year 2012, activities on public lands generated $4.6 billion in revenue, much of which was shared with the States where the activities occurred. In addition, public lands contributed more than $112 billion to the U.S. economy and helped support more than 500,000 jobs.
–BLM–Rock Springs Field Office   280 Highway 191 N.      Rock Springs, WY 82901