Document 2R0012pR7aLr80XZjDYdDE4na
Conversation Contents
Fwd: BLM Response to SO 3349
Attachments:
/88. Fwd: BLM Response to SO 3349/1.1 BLM_RESPONSE_SO_3349.pdf /88. Fwd: BLM Response to SO 3349/4.1 BLM_RESPONSE_SO_3349.pdf /88. Fwd: BLM Response to SO 3349/5.1 image001.png /88. Fwd: BLM Response to SO 3349/5.2 BLM_RESPONSE_SO_3349 (1).pdf
Shannon Stewart <scstewar@blm.gov>
From: Sent:
To:
Subject: Attachments:
Shannon Stewart <scstewar@blm.gov> Fri Apr 14 2017 15:43:53 GMT-0600 (MDT) Karen Kelleher <kkelleh@blm.gov>, Kristin Bail <kbail@blm.gov>, Steve Tryon <stryon@blm.gov> Fwd: BLM Response to SO 3349 BLM_RESPONSE_SO_3349.pdf
I have requested an electronic copy of the Word doc as well for our records and will send it along when I get it.
Have a nice weekend! Shannon
Shannon Stewart Acting Chief of Staff Bureau of Land Management 202-570-0149 (cell) 202-208-4586 (office) scstewar@blm.gov
Begin forwarded message:
From: "Seidlitz, Joseph (Gene)" <gseidlit@blm.gov> To: Richard Cardinale <richard cardinale@.ios.doi.gov>. Shannon Stewart <scstewar@blm.gov> Cc: Katharine Macgregor <katharine macgregor@.ios.doi.gov>. Jill Moran <jcmoran@blm.gov> Subject: BLM Response to SO 3349
Hi
Attached is the signed and dated memo to the Sec Office regarding BLM's Response to SO 3349. Original is in the Sec Office and Pam has a copy.
Cheers
Gene
Gene Seidlitz ASLM Analyst-Liaison
202-208-4555 (O) 775-304-1008 (C)
"Kelleher, Karen" <kkelleh@blm.gov>
From: Sent: To: CC: Subject:
"Kelleher, Karen" <kkelleh@blm.gov> Mon Apr 17 2017 12:21:46 GMT-0600 (MDT) Shannon Stewart <scstewar@blm.gov> "Bail, Kristin" <kbail@blm.gov>, Steve Tryon <stryon@blm.gov> Re: BLM Response to SO 3349
Hi Shannon, thanks. Just FYI that this isn't the final version we sent but the earlier one without the cleanup and final corrections mostly those that Leah had provided are missing. Karen
On Fri, Apr 14, 2017 at 5:43 PM, Shannon Stewart <scstewar@blm.gov> wrote: I have requested an electronic copy of the Word doc as well for our records and will send it along when I get it.
Have a nice weekend! Shannon
Shannon Stewart Acting Chief of Staff Bureau of Land Management 202-570-0149 (cell) 202-208-4586 (office) scstewar@blm.gov
Begin forwarded message:
From: "Seidlitz, Joseph (Gene)" <aseidlit@blm.aov> To: Richard Cardinale <richard_cardinale@ios.doi.gov>. Shannon Stewart <scstewar@blm.gov> Cc: Katharine Macgregor <katharine macgregor^os.doi.gov^ Jill Moran <icmoran@blm.gov> Subject: BLM Response to SO 3349
Hi
Attached is the signed and dated memo to the Sec Office regarding BLM's Response to SO 3349. Original is in the Sec Office and Pam has a copy.
Cheers Gene
Shannon Stewart Acting Chief of Staff Bureau of Land Management 202-570-0149 (cell) 202-208-4586 (office) scstewar@blm.gov
Begin forwarded message:
From: "Seidlitz, Joseph (Gene)" <gseidlit@blm.gov> To: Richard Cardinale <richard cardinale@ios.doi.gov>. Shannon Stewart <scstewar@blm.gov> Cc: Katharine Macgregor <katharine macgregor@ios.doi.gov>. Jill Moran <jcmoran@blm.gov> Subject: BLM Response to SO 3349
Hi
Attached is the signed and dated memo to the Sec Office regarding BLM's Response to SO 3349. Original is in the Sec Office and Pam has a copy.
Cheers Gene
Gene Seidlitz ASLM Analyst-Liaison
202-208-4555 (O) 775-304-1008 (C)
Karen Kelleher Deputy Assistant Director - Resources and Planning Main Interior room 5644 kkelleh@blm.gov 202-208-4896
"Kelleher, Karen" <kkelleh@blm.gov>
From:
Kelleher, Karen" <kkelleh@blm.gov>
Cheers Gene
Gene Seidlitz ASLM Analyst-Liaison
202-208-4555 (O) 775-304-1008 (C)
Karen Kelleher Deputy Assistant Director - Resources and Planning Main Interior room 5644 kkelleh@blm.gov 202-208-4896
"Bail, Kristin" <kbail@blm.gov>
From: Sent:
To:
Subject: Attachments:
"Bail, Kristin" <kbail@blm.gov> Wed Apr 19 2017 09:39:51 GMT-0600 (MDT) "Tryon, Steve" <stryon@blm.gov>, Karen Kelleher <kkelleh@blm.gov> Fwd: BLM Response to SO 3349 image001.png BLM_RESPONSE_SO_3349 (1).pdf
Here is a scanned copy of what was sent forward for SO 3339. -K
--------- Forwarded message ----------From: Stewart, Shannon <scstewar@blm.gov> Date: Wed, Apr 19, 2017 at 11:34 AM Subject: Re: BlM Response to SO 3349 To: "Bail, Kristin" <kbail@blm.gov>
Sorry, I thought I included you on this when I sent it.
Shannon
On Wed, Apr 19, 2017 at 11:16 AM, Bail, Kristin <kbail@blm.gov> wrote:
Not the scanned version, no. Thanks -
Kristin Bail, Assistant Director Resources and Planning (WO-200)
APR 1 3 2017
INFORMATION/BRIEFING MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY
DATE:
April 13,2017
THROUGH: Katharine MacGregor, Acting Assistant Secretary Land and Minerals Management
FROM:
Michael D. Nedd, Acting Director - Bureau of Land Management
SUBJECT: Implementation of Secretary's Order 3349, Section 5(a) and (b)
This memorandum responds to questions posed in sections 5(a)(i) and 5(b)(i) of Secretary's Order (SO) 3349, "American Energy Independence," which requests summary information about "actions" the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has adopted or is in the processes of developing with respect to certain memoranda and orders related to mitigation and climate change. The BLM has interpreted "actions," as described in SO 3349, to include: (1) new regulations or amendments to existing regulations; (2) new or revised BLM Manual Sections; (3) new or revised handbooks; (4) Instruction Memoranda (IM); (5) Information Bulletins (IB); and (6) other policy and guidance documents that include direction on mitigation and climate change.
BACKGROUND ON MITIGATION For decades, the BLM has been using mitigation to reduce the severity or seriousness of impacts to resources and land uses across the landscape. As required under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the BLM routinely evaluates mitigation measures in its Environmental Impact Statements and Environment Assessments for land use plans and project authorizations. When BLM implements mitigation, it seeks to avoid impacts, minimize impacts, and compensate for residual impacts to sensitive, scarce, or important resources consistent with the definition of mitigation in the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations (40 C.F.R. 1508.20). Avoidance and minimization have been and continue to be the most commonly used mitigation when BLM is authorizing an action. Although it was applied inconsistently prior to issuance of the first policy on the topic in 2005, BLM has also used compensatory mitigation, particularly to reduce residual impacts to threatened and endangered species, cultural resources, air, and water. The BLM does not have a centralized tracking system for mitigation payments at this time.
Mitigation measures are often incorporated into lease stipulations, permit conditions of approval, best management practices, or reclamation measures; avoidance and minimization measures are also commonly built into the proposed action as design features to avoid known sensitive resources. Mitigation, including compensation, is a particularly useful tool for the BLM because it can help to facilitate compliance with a variety of applicable laws where an action might not otherwise comply, i The Permian Basin Agreement is an example of a voluntary program offered
i Mitigation can play an important role under the Clean Water Act, for example, when restoration can help achieve the no net loss of wetlands standard; under the Clean Air Act, to comply with Implementation Plans for non attainment areas or to prevent/reduce air quality degradation; under the Endangered Species Act, as incorporated in
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Specifically, it describes three toolkits available for BLM staff to use when estimating emissions for NEPA or other purposes. 5. BLM IM 2017-037: Waste Mine Methane Policy. This IM establishes national policies and processes to foster voluntary activities by operators to capture waste mine methane from underground coal or other solid mineral mines. These policies allow waste mine methane to be put to productive use, where economical, and reduce environmental impacts, while ensuring continued safe underground mining operations on Federal lands 6. BLM Waste Prevention, Production Subject to Royalties, and Resource Conservation regulation. 81 Fed. Reg. 83008 (January 17, 2017). This new rule provided guidance on managing methane. Please see response to Section 5(c) for more information on this rule.
PREVIOUS BLM CLIMATE CHANGE ACTIONS Prior to issuance of the documents listed in SO 3349, the BLM took the following actions of note related to climate change:
1. BLM New Mexico IM No. NM-2013-022, Availability of Updated Air Resources Technical Report (ARTR); Use of Environmental Assessment (EA) Template Air Quality and Climate Change Language for Applications for Permit to Drill (APDs) and Lease Sales (June 2013). This IM instructed District and Field Offices to use the latest version of the BLM New Mexico Air Resources Technical Report, and provided template language for use in NEPA environmental analysis documents to address air quality and climate change impacts.
2. BLM Oregon/Washington IM No. OR-2010-012, Analysis of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Consideration of Climate Change in National Environmental Policy Act Documents (January 2010). This IM provided guidance on analyzing greenhouse gas emissions and addressing changing climate conditions in NEPA documents. The IM expired in October 2011.
3. BLM IM No. 2008-171, Guidance on Incorporating Climate Change into Planning and NEPA Documents (August 2008). This IM transmitted draft guidance on incorporating climate change considerations into the Land Use Planning/NEPA analysis process, and requested feedback from the BLM states on their experience with incorporating climate change into NEPA documents.
4. BLM Land Use Planning Handbook H-1601-1 (2005). BLM's land use planning regulations and handbook provide broad guidance on the development of land use plans. The handbook guidance includes the consideration of climate change.
BLM has also developed tools and a report to assist in assessing emissions, including the following:
1. Tool: BLM Emissions Inventory Toolkit. The BLM Washington Office is developing an Emissions Inventory Toolkit, scheduled for completion in September 2017, which would consolidate and enhance existing emissions inventory tools that have been
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agency facilities, which we do by considering opportunities to make buildings more "green" when completing audits and conducting building upgrades; to include climate change considerations in outreach programs; to develop native seed that is adapted to local conditions; and to support the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy. BLM has taken actions in all of these areas, as well as others to address fire, invasive species, drought and other threats impacting the public lands. Examples of such adaptation actions include the following: helping develop and implement the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy; participating in the work of the National Invasive Species Council; working with the State of Montana and the National Drought Resilience Partnership to build drought resilience in the Upper Missouri River Basin; synthesizing and considering ecoregional information related to impacts of climate change on the resources BLM manages in land use planning; and partnering with individual livestock permittees to adapt their operations to be more resilient to wildland fire and drought.
NEXT STEPS In responding to SO 3349, the BLM has focused primarily on policies that have been adopted since the date of the documents specified in the Order. However, we have included certain earlier policies to provide content and a history of how these policies have evolved over time. The BLM has applied mitigation and considered climate change in its decision-making and use authorizations for years, encompassing thousands of individual actions and decisions. As noted previously, several laws, such as the National Historic Preservation Act and the National Environmental Policy Act, require the BLM to consider mitigation and/or climate change in its decision-making processes. Courts have also weighed in on the need for the BLM to consider both mitigation and climate change, including greenhouse gas emissions. The BLM recommends considering modification of the BLM's mitigation and greenhouse gas policies, rather than complete rescission.
When the Deputy Secretary informs the Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals, in accordance with Section 5(a)(ii) of SO 3349, about how to proceed in modifying the BLM's mitigation policy, the BLM requests that clarification be provided on what elements of the "mitigation hierarchy" (which variously encompasses avoid, minimize, rectify (repair, rehabilitate, restore), reduce, eliminate, compensate) should be reconsidered. The BLM also requests clarification on whether specific past decisions should be reconsidered. In general, BLM believes the primary mitigation-related issues of concern relate to compensation. Therefore, the BLM recommends that reconsideration of its mitigation policies focus on its approach to compensation in ongoing or future land use plans and projects, such as which resources should be compensated for and what standard(s) should be applied when compensatory mitigation is appropriate (e.g., no net loss, net conservation gain).
When the Deputy Secretary informs the Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals, in accordance with Section 5(b)(ii) of SO 3349, about how to proceed in modifying the BLM's climate change policy, the BLM requests that clarification be provided on whether reconsideration should focus on analyzing the impacts of BLM's land use authorizations on climate change (e.g., greenhouse gases) or should also include reconsideration of BLM's
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adaptation actions (e.g., drought, invasive species, fire and other changes that may be related to climate change). In general, BLM believes there is broad public support for BLM's adaptationrelated actions with regard to managing the public lands to be resistant and resilient to wildland fire, invasive species, and drought as this makes the public lands more capable of providing the variety of uses and services the public expects. The BLM recommends, therefore, that reconsideration focus on policy related to greenhouse gases, such as evaluation of downstream effects. Based on feedback from the Deputy Secretary to the Assistant Secretary, the BLM will, in accordance with Section 5(a)(iii) and 5(b)(iii), determine which mitigation or climate policies cause an unnecessary burden to domestic energy development and provide a draft revised or substitute action for review.
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