A legal notice initiating the 30-day comment period published in the Vernal Express on June 5, 2024. We are accepting comments for 30 days starting the day after the publication of the legal notice. The comment period closes July 5, 2024.
Opportunity to Comment
Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area (NRA) Management Plan
USDA Forest Service, Ashley National Forest, Flaming Gorge Ranger District
Daggett County, UT and Sweetwater County, WY
Responsible Official: Acting Forest Supervisor Kristy Groves
The Ashley National Forest is releasing a draft environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact for the Flaming Gorge NRA Management Plan. This is a proposed area management plan with direction for all resources and resource uses in the Flaming Gorge NRA. The Ashley National Forest has identified a need to amend the 2024 Ashley National Forest Land Management Plan (Forest Plan) to adopt and implement the proposed Flaming Gorge NRA Management Plan, consistent with the purpose and need of the proposed action to update the existing NRA management direction. Once finalized, the Flaming Gorge NRA Management Plan would be an amendment to the Forest Plan. See the project website for more information and to access the documents: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/ashley/?project=63232.
As per Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 219.13(b)(5), the responsible official shall “determine which specific substantive requirement(s) within 219.8 through 219.11 are directly related to the plan direction being added, modified, or removed by the amendment and apply such requirement(s) within the scope and scale of the amendment.” We hereby give notice that the substantive requirements that are likely to be directly related to the proposed programmatic amendment are: 36 CFR 219.8(a) regarding ecological sustainability and (b) regarding social and economic sustainability; 36 CFR 219.9(a) regarding ecosystem plan components and (b) regarding additional species-specific plan components; 36 CFR 219.10(a) regarding integrated resource management for multiple use; and 36 CFR 219.11(d)(3) regarding timber harvest to be carried out in a manner consistent with the protection of soil, watershed, fish, wildlife, recreation, and aesthetic resources.
The decision to approve the plan amendment will be subject to the plan-level objection procedures as outlined in 36 CFR 219, Subpart B. Only those who have submitted substantive formal comments (36 CFR 219.62), during an opportunity for public comment will be eligible to file an objection (36 CFR 219.53). Individuals and organizations wishing to be eligible to object must meet the information requirements in section 36 CFR 219.54(c) and include name, postal address, title of the project, and signature or other verification of identity upon request of the individual or entity who authored the comments.
We are accepting comments (online, mail, hand delivery) for 30 days following publication of the legal notice, the publication date of which is the exclusive means for calculating the comment period. Submit comments via the project webpage (through the Comment/Object on Project link) at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/ashley/?project=63232. Electronic comments must be submitted in a common format such as .pdf, .docx, .doc, or .txt and file names must be less than 85 characters long (including spaces). Mailed comments should be sent to: Ashley National Forest, Attn: Ryan Buerkle, 355 N Vernal Ave, Vernal, UT 84078. Hand delivery of written comments may be made during normal working hours to the same address. It is the responsibility of persons providing comments to submit them by the close of the comment period.
Ryan Buerkle
