http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=2&display=rednews/2004/10/03/build/sports/53-ah-nei-travel-plan.inc

Deadline delayed for Ah-Nei travel plan

By BRETT FRENCH
Gazette Outdoor Writer

The deadline to prepare an environmental assessment for management of the Shepherd Ah-Nei recreation area has been pushed back.

The Bureau of Land Management had originally planned to have the document ready by this fall. But the agency is being especially meticulous to ensure the matter doesn't end up in court again, said Lynn Anderson, outdoor recreation planner for BLM's Billings Field Office.

"We want to make sure we're giving ourselves enough time," Anderson said. "We don't want to hurry this."

A 640-acre section of the Ah-Nei area has been closed to motorized recreation since April 23. The closure followed a judge's order that required BLM to analyze use of the existing trails at the southern end of the area, known as the Thaut property. Nonmotorized use of the area is still allowed, as it is on an additional 512 acres north and east of the Thaut property that was never open to off-road vehicles.

Prior to the judge's ruling, the BLM was in the process of developing travel management plans for four high priority areas in the Billings area this spring, including Ah-Nei, Acton, Horsethief and the Pryor Mountains. But the court's action pushed Ah-Nei to the forefront, Anderson said.

"We made that our highest priority," she said, "because it's such an important area for the public to recreate in."

Due to the interest in the area, the BLM plans to hold a public meeting in mid-October to present its work to date and seek additional guidance from the public.

"We won't have an actual comment period," Anderson said. "But we will show them what we've come up with for management alternatives based on the resource concerns we have."

The agency will, however, consider suggestions on refining the alternatives to guide development of their draft travel management plan, she said. And once the draft is released, the public can comment again.

Due to the delays, the BLM probably won't have a draft published until the end of the year, Anderson said.

The closure of Ah-Nei was the result of a lawsuit filed by an adjacent landowner who argued the BLM never properly planned for use of the land. The judge agreed and ordered BLM to draw up a site-specific plan for the Thaut property.

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