Date: September 9, 2004

CONTACT: Jamie Thompson, Public Affairs Officer, (775) 623-1500

BLM ANNOUNCES AVAILABILITY OF BLACK ROCK NCA PLAN

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced that the Resource Management Plan and Record of Decision (RMP/ROD) for the Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area (NCA) is available for public review. “The BLM published the notice of availability in the Federal Register Friday, September 3, 2004. This is the final step in the planning process mandated by Congress in the NCA Act of 2000 for completion of a resource management plan for the NCA and its ten associated wilderness areas” says NCA Manager Dave Cooper.

The planning area, located from 100 to 150 miles northeast of Reno and north and east of Gerlach, Nevada, is composed of over 1,200,000 acres of federal lands (about the size of the State of Delaware) and includes the NCA and wilderness areas (created by an act of Congress on December 21, 2000). Resources within the planning area include the Black Rock Desert Playa (one of the flattest places on Earth and where the world land speed record of 763 miles per hour was set in 1997), the 315,000-acre Black Rock Desert Wilderness (the largest Wilderness unit administered by BLM), portions of a number of scenic mountain ranges, healthy populations of many species of wildlife such as deer, antelope, bighorn sheep and sage-grouse, over 120 miles of emigrant trail routes associated with the Applegate and Nobles trails, and a landscape setting essentially unaltered from the period when the trails were used during the westward migration to Oregon and California in the early and middle 1800s, It is also home to the annual Burning Man event, the largest special recreation event permitted by the BLM.

Congress gave the area special designation in the NCA Act of 2000 to “conserve, protect, and enhance for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations the unique and nationally important historical, cultural, paleontological, scenic, scientific, biological, educational, wildlife, riparian, wilderness, endangered species, and recreational values and resources associated with the Applegate-Lassen and Nobles Trails corridors and surrounding areas.”

“A three-year planning process involving two Resource Advisory Councils (RACs), a RAC NCA Subgroup, State of Nevada Black Rock Planning Team, Tribal governments, and many other groups and individuals, worked long and hard along with BLM to create this plan," said Cooper. "All of us are very proud to have been part of this successful collaborative effort."

The RMP/ROD can be viewed at local repositories located at the: University of Nevada-Reno Library, Humboldt County Library in Winnemucca NV, BLM NV Carson City Field Office, BLM NV State Office in Reno NV, Gerlach NV Library, Reno NV Public Library, Pershing County NV Public Library in Lovelock NV, Lyon County NV Library Branches in Dayton and Fernley NV, BLM CA Surprise Field Office in Cedarville CA, BLM CA Eagle Lake Field Office in Susanville CA, Modoc County Library Branches in Cedarville and Alturas CA, Sacramento Public Library, and BLM NV Winnemucca Field Office.

To reduce the cost to taxpayers, those who wish to order copies of the document are encouraged to request the CD format rather than a printed hardcopy (the CD documents are in a searchable format.). However, CDs and hard copies of the RMP/ROD can be ordered at the website or by mail at: NCA Plan, Bureau of Land Management, Winnemucca Field Office, 5100 East Winnemucca Blvd., Winnemucca, NV 89445-2921, or by calling that office at (775) 623-1500. It is important to give your complete name and mailing address and to specify whether you want the document as a CD or in the 120-page, hardcopy form. As soon as possible the document will be posted online in searchable format at http://www.nv.blm.gov/Winnemucca/

“The participation of the public was essential to development of a management plan that truly represents the broadest range of concerns and interests possible. BLM believes the Black Rock NCA planning process serves as an excellent example of how such plans will be developed in the future,” added Winnemucca Field Office Manager Terry Reed.

In accordance with BLM regulations at 43 CFR 1610.5-1(b), since no significant changes were made from the Proposed RMP that was made available for public review and protest on September 17, 2003 (Federal Register, Vol. 68, No. 180, pg. 54487), the RMP in its entirety is not appealable. However, three decisions included in the RMP are implementation actions that are now subject to appeal.

Two of these implementation actions deal with Transportation: 1.) Designation of roads and motorized trails open to motorized use; and 2.) Designation of routes closed to motorized use. The last deals with Wilderness and Wildlife Management: 3.) Maintenance of existing water sources for wildlife. Any party adversely affected by one of these three implementation decisions may appeal them within 30 days (by no later than October 4, 2004) in accordance with the provisions of 43 CFR 4.4. More information on the three implementation actions and the procedures for appealing them are in Attachment 1 of the ROD, "Implementation Decisions".

"It's important that BLM knows what concerns the public has about how we're managing their public lands and resources. So whether or not a decision or action is appealable, members of the public are always encouraged to express their views and to participate during implementation of the decisions included in the RMP," said Owen Billingsley, Surprise Field Office Manager in Cedarville, California.
Questions about the RMP/ROD or the appeal process should be directed to Dave Cooper, NCA Manager, at the Winnemucca Field Office at (775) 623-1500, or by mail to: NCA Manager, Bureau of Land Management, 5100 East Winnemucca Blvd., Winnemucca, NV 89445-2921.

- BLM -