1 The Browns Canyon Chronicle - Volume 1 Issue 1 - May 2019 The Browns Canyon Chronicle The Newsletter of the Browns Canyon National Monument Resource Management Plan Volume 1 Issue 1 - May 2019 https://go.usa.gov/xn2eC In This Issue Public Scoping for BCNM Plan Underway.…………………..1 Field Manager’s Message…………..…………….....2 Schedule of Public Scoping Meetings for BCNM Resource Management Plan……………………………………...2 Public Comments Sought on BCNM Wild & Scenic River Values……………...………………...3 Key Reports Help Agencies Develop BCNM Resource Management Plan.…………….4 A River Runs Through It.....4 On May 14, 2019, the BLM and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) published in the Federal Register a notice of intent (NOI) to prepare a resource management plan / environmental impact statement (RMP/ EIS) for Browns Canyon National Monument (BCNM). This began a 30-day scoping period during which the BLM is soliciting comments from the public on the preliminary alternatives (see page 4) and issues to be addressed in the Browns Canyon RMP/EIS. BCNM was created by presidential proclamation on February 19, 2015, and it consists of about 21,600 acres of public land in the upper Arkansas river valley in Chaffee County, Colorado, of which, the BLM manages about 9,790 acres, and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) manages about 11,810 acres. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), through the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area (AHRA) manages river- based recreation on the Arkansas River, which runs through Browns Canyon. The BLM and the USFS are developing the Browns Canyon RMP/EIS jointly with cooperation from CPW, the towns of Buena Vista and Salida, and Native American tribes. The BLM is the lead agency in the planning process. BLM and USFS will also host several public meetings to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas about monument management issues, goals and objectives (see page 2). Comments can be submitted on the BCNM ePlanning website: https://go.usa.gov/ xn2eC or by U.S. Mail to BCNM RMP/EIS, 5575 Cleora Road, Salida, CO 81201. Please do not email comments. The scoping period ends on June 12, 2019. Public Scoping for BCNM Plan Underway Kayaker and stand-up paddle boarder on the Arkansas River in Browns Canyon National Monument. Photo by Logan Myers.
Transcript
1 The Browns Canyon Chronicle - │Volume 1 Issue 1 - May 2019
The Browns Canyon Chronicle The Newsletter of the Browns Canyon National Monument Resource Management Plan Volume 1 Issue 1 - May 2019 https://go.usa.gov/xn2eC
I n T h i s I s s u e Public Scoping for BCNM Plan Underway.…………………..1
Field Manager’s Message…………..…………….....2
Schedule of Public Scoping Meetings for BCNM Resource Management Plan……………………………………...2
Public Comments Sought on BCNM Wild & Scenic River Values……………...………………...3
Key Reports Help Agencies Develop BCNM Resource Management Plan.…………….4
A River Runs Through It.....4
On May 14, 2019, the BLM and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) published in the Federal Register a notice of intent (NOI) to prepare a resource management plan / environmental impact statement (RMP/EIS) for Browns Canyon National Monument (BCNM). This began a 30-day scoping period during which the BLM is soliciting comments from the public on the preliminary alternatives (see page 4) and issues to be addressed in the Browns Canyon RMP/EIS.
BCNM was created by presidential proclamation on February 19, 2015, and it consists of about 21,600 acres of public land in the upper Arkansas river valley in Chaffee County, Colorado, of which, the BLM manages about 9,790 acres, and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) manages about 11,810 acres. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), through the Arkansas Headwaters
Recreation Area (AHRA) manages river-based recreation on the Arkansas River, which runs through Browns Canyon. The BLM and the USFS are developing the Browns Canyon RMP/EIS jointly with cooperation from CPW, the towns of Buena Vista and Salida, and Native American tribes. The BLM is the lead agency in the planning process.
BLM and USFS will also host several public meetings to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas about monument management issues, goals and objectives (see page 2).
Comments can be submitted on the BCNM ePlanning website: https://go.usa.gov/xn2eC or by U.S. Mail to BCNM RMP/EIS, 5575 Cleora Road, Salida, CO 81201. Please do not email comments. The scoping period ends on June 12, 2019.
Public Scoping for BCNM Plan Underway
Kayaker and stand-up paddle boarder on the Arkansas River in Browns Canyon National Monument. Photo by Logan Myers.
Field Manager’s Message Public scoping is an exciting and USFS, and CPW/AHRA greatly appreciate valuable part of developing a resource the strong community support provided management plan for Browns Canyon in the initial planning stages for the RMP National Monument, which is a unit in and look forward to building on that the BLM’s National Conservation Lands support. The BCNM RMP/EIS will replace system. Comments submitted by the the 1996 BLM Royal Gorge Resource public during scoping help determine the Area RMP and amend the 1984 USFS issues, goals, and objectives that the Pike and San Isabel National Forest Land RMP/EIS will analyze and help ensure and Resource Management Plan, which that management of BCNM is responsive currently guide management of the to the public’s needs and desires. Public monument. We look forward to reading involvement is absolutely essential in your comments or meeting you at one of developing the plan, which will guide our public meetings! management of the monument for —Keith Berger, Field Manager current and future generations. The BLM, Royal Gorge Field Office
Photo by Logan Myers
Venue Address Date Time
SteamPlant Event Center 220 West Sackett Avenue, Salida, CO 81201 Monday, June 3, 2019 5:30–7:30 p.m.
Buena Vista Community Center 715 E Main St, Buena Vista, CO 81211 Tuesday, June 4, 2019 5:30–7:30 p.m.
Marriott Denver West 1717 Denver West Boulevard, Golden, CO Wednesday, June 5, 2019 5:30–7:30 p.m.
There will also be two public scoping webinars online on Wednesday, May 29, 2019, 12:00–1:00 pm, and Tuesday, June 04, 2019, 1:00–2:00 pm, MDT. For webinar call- in information or updates regarding public meetings, visit the BCNM ePlanning website at https://go.usa.gov/xn2eC or call 719-269-8500, Monday–Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., MDT. All open houses will start with a short presentation on the BCNP RMP/EIS and the planning process.
PLEASE NOTE
Before including your address, phone
number, email 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 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.
2 The Browns Canyon Chronicle - │Volume 1 Issue 1 - May 2019
SCHEDULE OF PUBLIC SCOPING MEETINGS FOR BCNM RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN
Public Comments Sought on BCNM Wild & Scenic River Values
As part of public scoping for the BCNM RMP/EIS, the BLM and USFS are requesting public and stakeholder comments about the eligibility andoutstandingly remarkable values (ORVs)of waterways in the monument, in accordance with the Wild and Scenic River Act of 1968 (WSR Act). The BLM recently completed an eligibility study of the Arkansas River for the Eastern Colorado RMP, so the streams under agency study are tributary to but do not include the Arkansas River (see map).
A unique or rare river-related value (i.e., ORV), is one that is a conspicuousexample from among a number of similar examples that are themselves uncommon or extraordinary. The BLM and USFS are seeking public comments on values listed in Section 1(b) of the WSR Act, specifically “scenic,recreational, geological, fish and wildlife, historical, cultural, or other similar values.”
Other values that the agencies may consider include ecological, biological, botanical, paleontological, hydrological, traditional cultural uses, water quality, and scientific values. ORVs must be located in the river segment (or stream area) or on its immediate shores, within 1/4 mile, and contribute substantially to the functioning of the river ecosystem, and/or owe their location or existence to the presence of the river.
Following scoping, agency resource specialists will complete a draft WSR eligibility report, which will be released for public review.
N
+ 0 2
Miles No Warranty is made by the Bureau of Land Management • to the acc11acy, reliability, or completeness of these dnl k>r individual use or aggregate use wfth other data.
Segments
C!iinVoA ~nal MonuJTlent
For a complete discussion of the wild and scenic river study process, please see BLM Manual 6400–Wild and Scenic Rivers–Policy and Program Direction for Identification, Evaluation, Planning, and Management, available online here: https://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/uploads/
mediacenter_blmpolicymanual6400.pdf.
3 The Browns Canyon Chronicle - │Volume 1 Issue 1 - May 2019
K ey Reports Help Agencies Develop BCNM Resource Management Plan
The BLM and USFS conducted a number Pof studies and subsequently publishedseveral reports in 2017–2019 to help
lanning Assessment Report evaluates est available scientific and other
information about conditions, trends, and management questions relevant to monument resources, objects, values and uses.
answer questions related to developinga resource management plan for BrownsCanyon National Monument. The BLMand USFS are soliciting comments onthe Planning Criteria Report duringpublic scoping for the RMP/EIS. All ofthese reports are available on the BLM’sland use planning (ePlanning) website:https://go.usa.gov/xn2eC .
Planning Criteria Report: Preliminary Alternatives and Basis for Analysis describes how the preliminary alternatives were developed and the methods that will be used to analyze potential impacts of the management alternatives in the BCNM RMP/EIS.
Social Landscape Asseument of Browns Canyon National Monument
Social Landscape Assessment Browns Canyon National Monumanalyzes the results of stakeholinterviews, listening sessions, aparticipatory human ecology mappinghelp understand the public’s valuinterests, and concerns related to BCN
A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT
You don’t have to tell the more than 373,000 annual visitors who raft or otherwise recreate in the segment of the Arkansas River that passes through Browns Canyon National Monument how spectacular it is, because they already know that. The Arkansas River is one of the most commercially rafted rivers in the United States, and the broader Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area supports about 46.6 million dollars in local economic activity from fishing and boating each year. That’s roughly 7.5 percent of the 618.5 million dollars generated by BLM-managed recreation in Colorado in fiscal year 2017. AHRA is managed by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. For more information, go to the CPW website at https://
cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/
ArkansasHeadwatersRecreationArea or visit or call the AHRA office at 307 West Sackett Ave, Salida, CO 81201, (719) 539-7289. The office is open 7 days a week. Photo by Logan Myers.
EFFE CTIVE COMME NTS
Focus on issues such as wild and scenic river values (see page 3) or those in the preliminary alternatives and basis for analysis (see Planning Criteria Report above).
of ent Provide constructive solutions, der specific examples, and supporting nd documentation. to Are clear, concise, and relevant. es, M. Avoid simply stating an opinion.
4 The Browns Canyon Chronicle - │Volume 1 Issue 1 - May 2019
Planning Criteria Report Prehminary Alternatives and Basis for Analysis Browns Canyon Natoo~al Monument Resource "-lan1Qement Plan
Socio-Economic Baseline Assessment Rro..,,, Canyon t,l,1honal l,fonumen1 Man~g~rnent Plan I flS
Baseline Socioeconomic Report profiles population trends, demographics, and other social and cultural characteristics relevant to the BCMN and discusses employment, wages, earnings, sources of income, public finance, and economic indicators.
