4331-16
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[BLM_CO_FRN_ MO4500179560]
Notice of Availability of the Proposed Resource Management Plan Amendment and
Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Gunnison Sage-Grouse
(Centrocercus minimus), Colorado and Utah
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
SUMMARY: In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as
amended (FLMPA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a proposed
resource management plan (RMP) amendment and final environmental impact statement
(EIS) for the Gunnison Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus minimus) and by this notice is
announcing the start of a 30-day protest period of the proposed RMP amendment.
DATES: This notice announces the beginning of a 30-day protest period to the BLM on
the proposed RMP amendment. Protests must be postmarked or electronically submitted
on the BLM’s ePlanning site within 30 days of the date that the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) publishes its Notice of Availability (NOA) in the Federal Register. The
EPA usually publishes its NOAs on Fridays.
ADDRESSES: The proposed RMP amendment and final EIS is available on the BLM
ePlanning project website at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanningui/project/2019031/510. Documents pertinent to this proposal may also be examined at
the Grand Junction, Uncompahgre, Tres Rios, Gunnison, San Luis Valley, Moab, and
Monticello Field Offices.

Instructions for filing a protest with the BLM for the Gunnison Sage-Grouse
(Centrocercus minimus) RMP amendment can be found at:
https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/filing-a-planprotest and at 43 CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be submitted in writing by one of the
following methods:
Website: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019031/510.
Regular mail and overnight mail: BLM Director, Attention: Protest Coordinator
(HQ210), Denver Federal Center, Building 40 (Door W-4), Lakewood, CO. 80215.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gina Phillips, Project Manager, BLM
Colorado, telephone 970-589-9852; BLM Southwest District Office, 2465 S. Townsend
Ave, Montrose, CO 81401; email BLM_CO_GUSG_RMPA@blm.gov. Individuals in the
United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may
dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services for
contacting Ms. Phillips. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay
services offered within their country to make international calls to the point-of-contact in
the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The RMP amendment would change the following existing plans.
Colorado:
•

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument RMP (2010)

•

Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area RMP (2017)

•

Grand Junction Field Office RMP (2015)

•

Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area RMP (2004)

•

Gunnison Resource Area RMP (1993)

•

McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area RMP (2004)

•

San Luis Resource Area RMP (1991)

•

Tres Rios Field Office RMP (2015)

•

Uncompahgre Field Office RMP (2020)

Utah:
•

Moab Field Office RMP (2008)

•

Monticello Field Office RMP (2008)

The Gunnison Sage-Grouse RMP amendment updates management decisions and
actions to promote Gunnison sage-grouse recovery and maintain and enhance habitat, as
identified in the 2020 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Recovery Plan, across the
eight currently recognized populations in southwest Colorado and southeast Utah.
Gunnison sage-grouse is federally listed as a threatened species under the Endangered
Species Act (ESA) (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544).
Planning area
The planning area spans portions of 19 Colorado Counties: Alamosa, Archuleta,
Conejos, Costilla, Delta, Dolores, Garfield, Gunnison, Hinsdale, La Plata, Mesa, Mineral,
Montezuma, Montrose, Ouray, Rio Grande, Saguache, San Juan, and San Miguel; and
two Utah Counties: Grand and San Juan; and encompasses approximately 25 million
acres of public land.
Purpose and Need
The BLM’s purpose consists of the following:
•

Promote the recovery of the threatened Gunnison sage-grouse and maintain and
enhance BLM-administered occupied and unoccupied habitat upon which the
species depends, while continuing to manage the land wherever possible for
multiple use and sustained yield;

•

Ensure management actions on BLM-administered lands support conservation
goals for Gunnison sage-grouse and their habitat;

•

Ensure that BLM management aligns with current science and data; relevant
Federal, State, and local decisions supporting recovery; the Department of the
Interior Climate Action Plan; and the USFWS Final Recovery Plan for Gunnison
Sage-Grouse and Recovery Implementation Strategy for Gunnison Sage-Grouse
(Centrocercus minimus); and

•

Provide consistent guidance for addressing threats to Gunnison sage-grouse
populations and their habitat.

This BLM action is necessary to accomplish the following:
•

Address the range-wide downward population trend of Gunnison sage-grouse
since 2014 and address issues related to land management that may affect
occupied and unoccupied habitat;

•

Respond to the ESA section 7(a)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1536(a)(1)) requirement that the
BLM use its authority to further the purposes of the ESA by implementing
management actions for the conservation of federally listed species and the
ecosystems upon which they depend; and

•

Respond to changing ecological and climate conditions affecting BLMadministered lands, including drought, habitat loss and fragmentation, reduced
riparian areas, and more frequent wildland fires.

Alternatives considered, including the Proposed Plan Alternative
The BLM analyzed six alternatives in detail, including the no action alternative.
This land use plan amendment addresses management actions impacting, or with the
potential to impact, Gunnison sage-grouse and occupied and unoccupied habitat in the
decision area. The decision area consists of approximately 2,182,660 acres of BLMmanaged surface lands (1,951,440 acres in Colorado and 231,220 acres in Utah) and
2,852,390 acres of Federal subsurface mineral estate (2,563,220 acres in Colorado and
289,170 acres in Utah). Alternative A (No Action Alternative – Current Management)

would continue current BLM management direction in the 11 administrative units in the
planning area.
Alternative B would prioritize removing identified threats within occupied and
unoccupied habitat and reduce impacts within the decision area, which includes a 4-mile
buffer around habitat and potential linkage-connectivity areas to the maximum extent
allowable. Alternative B contains two sub-alternatives for livestock grazing management
actions in response to recommendations made in public scoping comments. Alternative B
would designate all nominated Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs) that
meet relevance and importance criteria.
Alternative C would minimize, mitigate, or compensate for impacts from resource
uses and activities in occupied and unoccupied habitat. No new ACECs would be
designated under Alternative C.
Alternative D would allocate resource uses and conserve resource values while
sustaining and enhancing ecological integrity across the decision area and designate a
specific subset of nominated ACECs. Conservation measures focus on occupied and
unoccupied habitat that includes a 1-mile buffer around habitat and could extend to
linkage-connectivity areas.
Alternative E considers adopting applicable management direction from the
interagency Candidate Conservation Agreement for the Gunnison sage-grouse, Gunnison
Basin Population.
Alternative F (proposed plan amendment) was developed in response to public
comments on the draft RMP amendment/EIS and, similar to Alternative D, focuses
conservation measures on occupied and unoccupied habitat. For all populations,
Alternative F would apply buffers to all lek statuses (active, inactive, historic, unknown,
occupied, and unoccupied) and manage with the objective of no increase in net surface

disturbance; and it proposes management to increase available habitat for all Gunnison
sage-grouse populations.
The BLM considered three additional alternatives but dismissed them from
detailed analysis as explained in section 2.1.2.2 of the proposed RMP amendment/EIS.
Public Involvement
The BLM published a notice of intent in the Federal Register to initiate the public
scoping period for this planning effort on July 6, 2022 (87 FR 40262). The BLM hosted
four public scoping meetings (in Dove Creek, CO and Gunnison, CO) and two virtual
public meetings to solicit nominations for ACECs, identify the scope of issues to be
addressed in the RMP amendment, and gather input to assist in formulating a reasonable
range of alternatives. The resource concerns identified during the scoping process
included Gunnison sage-grouse habitat, vegetation, livestock grazing management,
mineral development, renewable energy development, wildland fire ecology and
management, ACECs, recreation, lands and realty, air resources, soil resources, lands
with wilderness characteristics, and social and economic conditions.
After preparing the draft RMP amendment/EIS in coordination with 30
cooperating agencies and working with Tribes, the BLM announced the 90-day comment
period through publication of its NOA in the Federal Register on November 9, 2023 (88
FR 77353). During the comment period, the BLM held two in-person public meetings (in
Dove Creek, CO and Gunnison, CO) and one virtual public meeting to inform the public
and solicit comments on the draft documents. The BLM received 141 comment letters
(including 115 unique letters and 26 form, form plus, or duplicate letters) during the
comment period. The BLM reviewed all letters submitted, analyzed the comments,
considered substantive comments, and revised the RMP amendment/EIS accordingly.
Comments and responses are attached as Appendix W in the proposed RMP
amendment/EIS.

Changes between Draft RMP Amendment and Proposed RMP Amendment
Based on public comments received on the draft RMP amendment/draft EIS, the
BLM updated the proposed RMP amendment/final EIS (Alternative F) by incorporating
management actions and allowable uses from Alternatives A, B, C, D, and E, including
corrections and rewording for clarification of purpose and intent. Language throughout
the document was revisited for readability and to meet the required page limits for an
EIS. In consideration of comments received, the following management was updated in
Alternative F:
•

Uses would be avoided in buffer distances for all Gunnison sage-grouse lek
statuses (active, inactive, historic, unknown in Colorado, occupied, and
unoccupied in Utah);

•

Objectives and management for net surface disturbance rather than disturbance
caps were clarified;

•

Management for Gunnison sage-grouse satellite populations was recognized as
different in some aspects from the Gunnison Basin population under Lands and
Realty and Recreation;

•

Management in the current and proposed ACECs was refined, and a new
Backcountry Conservation Area would be designated; and

•

Appendices were also developed and expanded upon.

Protest of the Proposed RMP Amendment
The BLM planning regulations state that any person who participated in the
preparation of the RMP and has an interest that will or might be adversely affected by
approval of the proposed RMP amendment may protest its approval to the BLM. Protest
on the proposed RMP amendment constitutes the final opportunity for administrative
review of the proposed land use planning decisions prior to the BLM adopting an
approved RMP amendment. Instructions for filing a protest with the BLM regarding the

proposed RMP amendment may be found online (see ADDRESSES). All protests must
be in writing and mailed to the appropriate address or submitted electronically through
the BLM ePlanning project website (see ADDRESSES). Protests submitted
electronically by any means other than the ePlanning project website will be invalid
unless a hard copy of the protest is also submitted. The BLM will render a written
decision on each protest. The protest decision of the BLM shall be the final decision of
the Department of the Interior. Responses to valid protest issues will be compiled and
documented in a Protest Resolution Report made available following the protest
resolution online at: https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/publicparticipation/protest-resolution-reports. Upon resolution of protests, the BLM will issue a
Record of Decision and approved RMP amendment.
Before including your phone number, email address, or other personal identifying
information in your protest you should be aware that your entire protest – including your
personal identifying information – may be made publicly available at any time. While
you can ask us in your protest to withhold your personal identifying information from
public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6, 40 CFR 1506.10, 43 CFR 1610.2; 43 CFR 1610.5)
Douglas J. Vilsack,
State Director.

[FR Doc. 2024-14531 Filed: 7/3/2024 8:45 am; Publication Date: 7/5/2024]