Stay engaged in federal land management planning efforts
By Tom Cadden, public information officer, Arizona Game and Fish Department

Ensure that you have a say in decisions being considered for federal lands in Arizona.

The Arizona Game and Fish Department has created a Web page (http://www.azgfd.gov/outdoor_recreation/federal_land_management.shtml) to serve as a resource for finding out about USDA Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) planning efforts statewide. The page includes contact information, Web site links and updates so you can be directly engaged with each Forest Service or BLM office and planning effort.

The Forest Service and BLM are revising land use management plans and travel management plans statewide. These plans include updated guidelines and rules on how public lands are to be managed (including what activities are permitted), and how and where motorized travel should occur.

The plans could potentially include proposed alternatives that change the way you currently enjoy public lands, particularly with regard to vehicular access, designation of open and closed roads, dispersed camping, and motorized retrieval of lawfully taken big game by hunters.

The different Forest Service districts and BLM field offices are in various phases of the planning efforts. Each effort includes a public input component.

Updated information about upcoming public meetings and links to documents released for public comment will be posted to the new Web page as information becomes available. Recently posted updates include letters from the Arizona Game and Fish Commission to the Forest Service and BLM regarding federal land use planning efforts.