Tuesday, 19 February 2008 12:44

Bureau Of Land Management’s New Plan

slide17.pngThe Bureau of Land Management has approved a new Sierra Resource Management Plan, or RMP, for Central California. The Sierra RMP’s purpose is to provide direction and guidance for more than 230,000 acres of public land located primarily in nine central California counties including Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Mariposa, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Tuolumne and Yuba counties. The RMP in intended to help define the role of the Bureau in meeting the public’s need for open space; safety from wildfire; clean water; economic opportunities on public lands, said Bill Haigh, Folsom Field Office manager.

The Sierra RMP covers a wide geographic area, from the Yuba River area near Marysville, to the American River in the Sierra foothills, to the Merced River in Mariposa County, to the Cosumnes River Preserve in the Sacramento Valley. The RMP includes a finding that both the South Fork American River and the North Fork (Main stem) Mokelumne River are suitable for inclusion in the federal Wild and Scenic River system.  However, only Congress can designate wild and scenic rivers. Decisions in the RMP identifying designated routes of travel for motorized vehicles are implementation decisions that may be appealed.   Any party adversely affected by the Bureau’s decision’s to define specific vehicle routes may appeal within 30 days of publication of the Notice of Availability. Scoping for the Resource Management Plan began in late 2004 and included numerous meetings with the public and other agencies and groups. Copies of the Sierra RMP are available at the Folsom Field Office in Folsom and online at www.ca.blm.gov/folsom. For further information contact Folsom field office manager Bill Haigh, (916) 985-4474