BLM Seeks Public Input On Land Management

The Bureau of Land Management wants input from Tuolumne and Calaveras County outdoor recreationists .

BLM spokesman John Scull says the agency oversees approximately 80-thousand acres of public land in Tuolumne and Calaveras counties.

Ideas on management from the public will then be incorporated into the BLM´s Resources Management Plan. That plan is expected to be finalized within 2 years. Scull says visitors to BLM areas, like the Red Hills near Chinese Camp, often know the area better than the government employees that manage the land.

The first BLM meeting in our area to garner public input will be held in San Andreas next Wednesday, between 6:30 and 9:30 p.m. at the Health Education Center at Mark Twain St. Joseph Hospital. Another meeting will be held the following Wednesday, on January 26th, between 6:30 and 9:30 p.m. in the cafeteria at Sonora High School on Washington Street. Scull says comments and input should be submitted in written form. The new plan may impact hikers, bicyclists, OHV users and equestrians.