HomeMy WebLinkAbout20232072.tiffUnited States Department of the Interior
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
Royal Gorge Field Office
3028 East Main Street
Canon City, CO 81212
In Reply Refer To:
1610 (LLCOF02000, JS)
Dear Interested Party:
RECEIVED
JUL 0 7 2023
COMMISSIONERS
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is pleased to announce that the Proposed Eastern
Colorado Resource Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement (PRMP
RMP/FEIS) is available. The Proposed RMP/FEIS and supporting information are available on
the project web site: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/39877.
The planning area for the Eastern Colorado RMP/EIS consists of about 35 million acres of land,
which includes 658,200 acres of BLM-administered surface lands and 3,311,900 acres of BLM-
administered mineral estate managed by the Royal Gorge Field Office. The planning area is the
entire field office regardless of ownership or agency. It includes 37 counties in eastern
Colorado, from just west of the Front Range to the eastern border of the state and from the
Wyoming/Nebraska border in the north to the New Mexico/Oklahoma border in the south. The
decision area for this RMP includes all of the public land administered by the BLM within the
field office boundaries except for that within the Browns Canyon National Monument, which is
managed under a separate RMP. When approved, this RMP will replace the 1986 Northeast
RMP and the 1996 Royal Gorge Resource Area RMP and will guide the management of public
lands administered by the Royal Gorge Field Office into the future. It does not include National
Forest System land and other Federal land where BLM does not make planning decisions about
oil and gas management and other uses. The BLM typically adopts the requirements determined
by those Federal surface -managing agencies when leasing the associated mineral estate; while
such lands are within the planning area, they are outside the decision area for this RMP.
The BLM announces a 30 -day protest period to the BLM on the Proposed RMP beginning with
the date following the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) publication of its Notice of
Availability (NOA) of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS in the Federal Register. The EPA usually
publishes its NOAs on Fridays. Protests must be postmarked or electronically submitted on the
BLM's ePlanning site during the 30 -day protest period.
The BLM planning regulations state that any person who participated in the preparation of the
RMP and has an interest which will or might be adversely affected by approval of the Proposed
RMP may protest its approval to the BLM. Protest on the Proposed RMP constitutes the final
opportunity for administrative review of the proposed land use planning decisions prior to the
BLM adopting an approved RMP. Instructions for filing a protest with the BLM for the Eastern
Colorado Resource Management Plan can be found at: https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-
and-nepa/public-participation/filing-a-plan-protest and at 43 CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be
submitted either as a hard copy or electronically via BLM's ePlanning website by the close of the
CotAKvel:co.-F-;on3
07/24 /23
INTERIOR REGION 7 • UPPER COLORADO BASIN
COLORADO, NEW MEXICO, UTAH. WYOMING
Cc.Pw(cH/ERIDO PL[rry,ON).
66 Cr-r% ormoz.R), c ACeB) cr-t(rP)
owlo/23
2023-2072
protest period. The only electronic protests the BLM will accept are those filed through
ePlanning. All protest letters sent to the BLM via fax or e-mail will be considered invalid unless
a properly filed protest is also submitted.
• Website: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/39877
• Regular Mail:
Director (210)
Attention: Protest Coordinator
P.O. Box 261117
Lakewood, CO. 80226
• Overnight Delivery:
Director (210)
Attention: Protest Coordinator
Denver Federal Center, Building 40
Lakewood, CO 80215
Thank you for your interest in the Eastern Colorado RMP. We appreciate your information and
suggestions. For additional information or clarification regarding this document or the planning
process, please contact John Smeins, RMP project manager, at 719-252-8212 or email
jsmeins@blm.gov.
Sincerely,
Keith Berger
Field Manager
Royal Gorge Field Office
Hello