The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Navajo Region, announces the availability of the Final Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) for the Final Integrated Resource Management Plan (IRMP) for the Former Bennett Freeze Area (FBFA) of the western portion of the Navajo Nation. The BIA presented the Final PEA and the Final IRMP to the Navajo Nation Resources and Development Committee on January 11, 2022 requesting approval, adoption, and implementation of the Final IRMP for the FBFA. If the Nation chooses to approve the Final IRMP and recommend that BIA adopt the Final IRMP, the BIA will issue a decision regarding adoption of the IRMP and the associated PEA. Please be advised that the public comment periods for the PEA have closed and BIA is no longer accepting public comments on the PEA.

Programmatic environmental documents analyzed effects on a broad scale, such as those resulting from proposed policies, plans, programs, or projects where subsequent specific actions will be implemented. Therefore, additional environmental analyses under NEPA will be required for all future site-specific project proposals in the FBFA. This PEA incorporates by reference the information in the FBFA Draft IRMP (NNDNR/BIA 2020).

This PEA was prepared following the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 40 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] 1500-1508), Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), and the Department of the Interior implementing regulations, and the Indian Affairs NEPA Guidebook (BIA 2012).

Click links below to download the Final Programmatic Environmental Assessment for the Integrated Resource Management Plan for the Former Bennett Freeze Area.