December 11, 2001
Jim Blanchard
(509) 754-0226

Final Environmental Impact Statement for Potholes Reservoir

The Bureau of Reclamation has released the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Potholes Reservoir Resource Management Plan, which analyzes the potential impacts of four alternative management plans for the land and resources in the Potholes Reservoir Study area.

The Preferred Alternative was modified from that in the Draft EIS to incorporate changes resulting from public comments. The major change was to leave a portion of the Yellow Zone open to seasonal off-road vehicle use, instead of closing the entire Yellow Zone to such use year-round.

The FEIS includes all comment letters received on the Draft EIS and Reclamation’s responses to those comments, as well as a summary of the comments from the public hearings.

A Record of Decision will be completed no sooner than 30 days after the Notice of Availability of the FEIS is published in the Federal Register. The ROD will identify the alternative that will be implemented and will discuss factors leading to the decision.

The FEIS is available on the internet at: http://www.pn.usbr.gov. The ROD will also be posted to the Internet upon its completion.

Please contact Jim Blanchard at (509) 754-0226 for additional information.