Submitting Comments

Scoping materials were made available to the public on June 27, 2024, and comments can be made until 2359 MST on July 19, 2024 by using the green “Participate Now” link on the left side of this page.

The Scoping Process

The purpose of this scoping package is to inform interested and affected parties of the proposal and to solicit comments to assist with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review.  Analysis of the proposal and alternatives will be documented in an Environmental Assessment (EA). 

What is Public Scoping?

Scoping is the initial public involvement process by which the BLM and other Federal agencies solicit internal and external input on the issues, impacts, and potential alternatives that will be addressed in an environmental impact statement or environmental assessment, as well as the extent to which those issues and impacts will be analyzed in the NEPA document.  Public scoping helps federal agencies identify possible alternatives, refine the proposed action, identify possible cumulative effects, obtain new information, refine issues, and identify new issues.

Purpose of External Scoping

Your input during scoping helps the BLM:

Ø  Refine the Proposed Action.

  Ø  Identify issues that could lead to design features or mitigation measures that may be analyzed.

  Ø  Generate information that may be used during the permitting or consultation process.

  Ø  Identify permits, surveys, or consultations required by other agencies.

  Ø  Identify cumulative effects from other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable actions.

  Ø  Identify alternatives to the Proposed Action.

An issue: 

  Ø  Has a cause and effect relationship with action alternatives

  Ø  Is within the scope of the analysis

  Ø  Has not been decided by law, regulation, or decision

  Ø  Is amendable to scientific analysis rather than conjecture