BLM Solicits Public Input on New Planning Initiative

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is in the process of drafting a proposed rule for part of its Planning 2.0 Initiative. Planning 2.0 is the agency’s strategy to streamline the development and update of its Resource Management Plans, which are documents that guide the management of BLM properties over 10-15 years. The agency stats that it hopes to “create a more dynamic, durable and efficient planning process that can better honor the valuable contributions made by the public; non-government organizations; and [its] partners from state; tribal and local governments; as well as other federal agencies.”

The agency has already hosted two listening sessions and solicited public input during an initial comment period. A summary of over 6,000 public comments is available on the Planning 2.0 website. Public comments addressed a wide variety of topics, including how the agency can best manage feral horses and burros, oil and gas development, livestock grazing, and response to climate change, among other items.

The next steps in implementing Planning 2.0 are revising the agency’s Land Use Planning Regulations and Land Use Planning Handbook. The BLM anticipates publishing a Proposed Rule for these revisions in summer of 2015. Another public comment period will then open for input on the Proposed Rule. Interested parties can be notified of the opening of the comment period by joining the Planning 2.0 email list.