BLM announces John Day-Snake Resource Advisory Council (RAC) meeting

VALE, Ore. – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced that the John Day-Snake Resource Advisory Council will meet June 6 and 7, 2024, at the Vale BLM Baker Field Office, 3100 H St., Baker City, Ore.

The BLM welcomes the public to attend both meetings. A virtual participation option will be offered for the June 6 meeting, which will include a field tour of the Virtue Flat Off-Highway Recreation Area at the end of the day. On June 7, attendees will tour the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center, which will be open to the public. There will be opportunities for public comment periods each day. Time for individual oral comments may be limited depending on the number of participants.

“The RAC plays a very valuable role in public lands management by providing the BLM and Forest Service with critical input on activities throughout central and northeast Oregon,” Designated Federal Official and BLM Vale District Manager Shane DeForest said. “We greatly appreciate the time this diverse group devotes to providing consensus-driven recommendations that enhance our decision making.”

The final agenda is posted at https://on.doi.gov/3NfbZag. Agenda topics will include updates from the BLM’s Vale and Prineville Districts and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wallowa-Whitman, Umatilla, Malheur, Ochoco, and Deschutes National Forests. Other agenda items may include management of energy and minerals, timber, rangeland and grazing, commercial and dispersed recreation, wildland fire and fuels, and wild horses and burros.

RACs provide advice and recommendations necessary for the BLM and Forest Service to consider when making natural resource and land management decisions. The six BLM-charted Advisory Councils covering Oregon and Washington are sounding boards for BLM initiatives, regulatory proposals, and policy changes.

Contact RAC coordinator Larisa Bogardus at 541-523-1407 or lbogardus@blm.gov for meeting links, details about the upcoming meetings, or more information about the JDSRAC. Individuals in the United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay services offered within their country to make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States. For sign language interpreter services, assistive listening devices, or other reasonable accommodations, please contact Larisa Bogardus at 541-523-1407 or lbogardus@blm.gov at least seven business days before the meeting to ensure there is sufficient time to process the request. The Department of the Interior manages accommodation requests on a case-by-case basis.

Additional information about the JDSRAC is available online at: www.blm.gov/get-involved/resource-advisory-council/near-you/oregon-washington/john-day-rac.