BLM seeks public input on draft Cotoni-Coast Dairies management plan

The Bureau of Land Management Central Coast Field Office is seeking public input on an environmental assessment and draft amendment to the Resource Management Plan for the California Coastal National Monument that will provide management direction for Cotoni-Coast Dairies public lands in Santa Cruz County. The 30-day public review period ends on March 19. (BLM news release)

Monterey Off-Road Cycling Association working with the BLM at the Fort Ord National Monument

For more than 15 years, the Monterey Off-Road Cycling Association has been working cooperatively with the BLM to restore and maintain trails at the Fort Ord National Monument, managed by the Central Coast Field Office. In 2019, MORCA members donated nearly 1,200 volunteer hours of trail work valued at approximately $25,000. (BLM CA Facebook)

BLM Desert Advisory Council to meet in El Centro, April 3-4

The Bureau of Land Management will hold a field tour and public meeting of the BLM California Desert District Advisory Council, consistent with BLM’s commitment to partnerships and public input necessary for managing sustainable, working public lands. (BLM news release)

BLM seeks public comment for the Camino Solar Project in Kern County

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Ridgecrest Field Office, is seeking public comments on the Camino Solar Project located in the Antelope Valley, west of Rosamond in Kern County. 

Public comments on the project Environmental Assessment must be submitted to the BLM by March16. (BLM news release)

Department of the Interior Fire hiring event

The Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are hiring dozens of wildland fire positions across the west. Attend the hiring event in Bakersfield on Feb. 22-23. (BLM CA Facebook)

BLM releases final plan to construct and maintain up to 11,000 miles of fuel breaks in the Great Basin to combat wildfires

the Bureau of Land Management released the Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Fuel Breaks in the Great Basin. This Final PEIS provides for the construction and maintenance of a system of up to 11,000 miles of strategically placed fuel breaks to control wildfires within a 223 million acre area that includes portions of Idaho, Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada and Utah. (BLM news release)

BLM Bishop Field Office to conduct prescribed fire to improve wetland habitat

Interagency wildland fire crews from the Bureau of Land Management Bishop Field Office and the Inyo National Forest will be treating up to 70 acres of public lands with prescribed fire at Fish Slough north of Bishop in Inyo and Mono counties to improve wetland habitat. Prescribed fire operations will occur in late February or early March, depending on weather, air quality and staff availability. (BLM news release)

Interior Announces Grants to 11 Western States for Big Game Winter Range and Migration Corridor Scientific Research

The Department of the Interior announced another round of $3.2 million in grant funding for 11 western states, bringing the Department’s and other stakeholders’ support of big game species habitat conservation and scientific research for migration corridors and winter ranges to more than $22 million. (DOI news release)

President Proposes $1.2 Billion BLM Budget to Meet Energy, Conservation and Other Priorities

President Trump has proposed an appropriation of $1.2 billion for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in Fiscal Year 2021, providing the funds needed to strike the right balance of conservation and sustainable use of America’s BLM-managed public lands and resources. (BLM news release)

President Trump’s Budget Proposes $12.8 Billion for Department of the Interior Programs in FY 2021

Today, President Donald J. Trump proposed a $12.8 billion Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 budget for the Department of the Interior, including a new, innovative $50 million initiative that would begin to transform and build a more stable and permanent wildland firefighting workforce to better align with the challenges of prolonged periods of wildfire activity and the need to more aggressively implement active vegetation management. (DOI news release)

Oil Production from Department of the Interior Managed Leases Surpasses 1 Billion Barrels for the First Time in History Under the Trump Administration

The Department of the Interior announced today that over one billion barrels of oil were produced in Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 from leases on federal and American Indian-owned lands and offshore areas – a historic milestone. This is greater than a 29 percent increase in production compared to the end of the previous Administration, which totaled 808.7 million barrels in FY 2016, and represents a 122.5-million-barrel increase in production compared to FY 2018. (BLM news release)

National African American History Month

From the Underground Railroad to the Tuskegee Airmen, African Americans have made significant contributions to our country's history. Interior salutes those contributions during February, National African American History Month. (DOI video)

Finding a scaly sweetheart

Name the fish whose male is territorial, has metallic blue coloration and nuzzles with its anticipated mate?

A) Golden Shiner

B) Speckled Dace

C) Desert Pupfish

D) Cuddlefish

Keep scrolling to find out!

Happy tails dog adventure at the La Quinta Cove

Thursday, 20 February 2020 from 08:30-10:00

Doggos! Fetch your leash and join other puppers on an outing in the great outdoors. “Happy Tails” provides fun exercise while exploring in nature. Learn about doggo-friendly trails along with local history, plants and wildlife. Set in the nearby Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument, this guided walk is designed to help locals learn how to enjoy the desert's Public Lands with attention to Bighorn Sheep. (BLM CA Facebook)

Yoga with a ranger

Friday, 21 February 2020 from 09:00-10:00

Join a National Monument park ranger for a fun yoga flow for all skill levels. Connect with the landscape through a sequence of physical postures, movements, and breathing techniques that also strengthen your body and mind. Poses commonly mimic Earth, animals and trees. This outdoor activity is routinely performed barefoot. Bring a yoga mat or towel, water, and sunscreen. Limited to 15 participants. Meet on the Visitor Center patio. (BLM CA Facebook)

These Alabama Hills are alive

Saturday, 22 February 2020 from 10:00-13:00

Explore the mysteries hidden within the eroded granite rock while walking through the passageways and along the ridge lines that make up the maze of this amazing setting. Learn about the many secretive creatures and flora hidden within the rocks. This is a moderately strenuous hike with occasional steep sections of trail.
Free Community Program open to the public. (BLM CA Facebook)

Public nominations for Resource Advisory Councils open

Deadline to submit nominations is Monday, 24 February 2020

The Northern California, Central District and Desert Resource Advisory Councils are seeking nominations for public members. These citizen-based committees assist in the development of recommendations that address public land management issues. The BLM maintains 37 such advisory committees formally chartered under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and the Federal Policy and Land Management Act (FLPMA) across the West. Of those committees, 31 are RACs and the remainder are site or subject-specific advisory councils. Each RAC consists of 10 to 15 members from diverse interests in local communities, and they assist in the development of recommendations that address public land management issues.