A Wilderness Inventory

The fate of more than three million acres in the Greater Hart-Sheldon will be determined in 2020, as the Lakeview District of the Bureau of Land Management considers how they will manage resources in this landscape. Public comments will be accepted for a short period of time once their draft management plan is release.
Here is a primer to help you understand one of the key issues that will be addressed in the BLM’s resource management plan.

watch

The Land Between: The Greater Hart-Sheldon Region

The Land Between: The Greater Hart-Sheldon Region

watch

Sage-grouse Mating Dance

Sage-grouse Mating Dance

listen

Greater Sage Grouse and Sparrows at Hart Mountain

Greater Sage Grouse and Sparrows at Hart Mountain

Primitive Recreation

The BLM did not recognize primitive or unconfined recreation in the Coglan Buttes area, noting that the opportunities present were not unique to that unit. ONDA disagreed. In 2018, the BLM recognized a host of recreational opportunities, including hiking and wildlife viewing, along the 14-mile-long escarpment.

Naturalness

In their 2012 inventory, the BLM did not consider the Beatys Butte area to be in a natural condition. ONDA disagreed. In their 2018 inventory, the BLM found the lands around Beatys Butte to possess naturalness.

Jim Davis

Solitude

Citing the open nature of the landscape, the BLM did not find Burma Rim to provide opportunities for solitude. ONDA disagreed, and, in 2018, the BLM found solitude here.

Next step

In 2020, the Bureau of Land Management will decide how best to manage these lands through the Lakeview Resource Management Plan.

Jim Davis