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<br />001283 <br /> <br />PREFACE <br /> <br />The inventory of potential wilderness areas on public lands administered <br />by the Bureau of Land Management (Bh~) will be initiated as soon as public <br />comments on the enclosed draft process are received and the process is <br />finalized. These lands, which total some 447 million acres, were not subject <br />to the Wilderness Act of 1964, ~ut were under the Federal Land Policy and <br />Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) , which authorized wilderness review and <br />management of carefully selected wilderness resources of the public lands. <br /> <br />Any actions regarding wilderness are likely to be controversial. The key <br />to minimizing such controversy is to develop an acceptable and well under- <br />stood procedure for conducting wilderness inventories, studies, and reports <br />to the President. The Secretary of the Interior has stated that he wants <br />" the widest possible public involvement. " in developing the <br />ground rules and guidelines for the wilderness review procedure. <br /> <br />The Secretary also emphasized that most multiple use activities--mining <br />and mineral leasing, livestock grazing, fire management, wildlife manage_ <br />ment and utilization, and the use of off-road vehicles--will continue as <br />long as potential wilderness values of an area are protected. The basic <br />policy will be to conduct the wilderness program with minimum disruption <br />to ongoing and planned activities and to complete the inventory on the <br />majority of the public lands as rapidly as possible. <br /> <br />, <br /> <br />The FLPMA established several specific requirements for the BLM to <br />accomplish in the wilderness review process. To meet these requirements <br />successfully, Bk~ needs a viable procedure for conducting its review of <br />potential wilderness areas. A proposed policy and review procedure has <br />been developed. The following draft proposal outlines the concepts that <br />Bk~ recommends be followed, and it offers tentative policy and procedures <br />for inventorying. studying, and reporting on candidate wilderness areas, <br /> <br />-., <br /> <br />The major need now is to determine if the draft proposal adequately meets <br />what the public would like the BLM to consider in conducting its wilderness <br />review. Please read the proposal. Your comments and suggestions are <br />requested and will be used to finalize the BLM's wilderness- policy and <br />review procedure. Your help will be deeply appreciated. <br />