[dropcap]A[/dropcap]NCHORAGE, Alaska — The Bureau of Land Management rescheduled the four remaining public scoping meetings that were postponed due to the Nov. 30 earthquake in Anchorage. The meetings are intended to gather public comments that help guide the development of a new Integrated Activity Plan (IAP) and associated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 22.1-million acre National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A).

Rescheduled meetings are now planned in the following communities:

• Utqiaġvik: Friday, Jan. 4, 2019, 7-10 p.m., at the Iñupiat Heritage Center
• Nuiqsut: Saturday, Jan. 5, 2019, noon-5 p.m., at the Kisik Community Center
• Wainwright: Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019, 7-10 p.m., at the Wainwright Community Center
• Point Lay: Thursday, Jan. 10, 2019, 7-10 p.m., at the Point Lay Community Center

Previous meetings were held Dec. 10-12 in Anchorage, Atqasuk and Anaktuvuk Pass, respectively.

The purpose of the IAP and EIS is to develop a new management strategy for the NPR-A consistent with Secretarial Order 3352, which was signed in June 2017.  The order calls for the review and development of a revised IAP “that strikes an appropriate balance of promoting development while protecting surface resources.” 

The BLM published the Notice of Intent in the Federal Register Nov. 21, 2018. This initiated a 45-day public scoping period that is extended to Jan. 22, 2019, to accommodate the rescheduled meetings. Comments may be submitted at the public scoping meetings or by regular mail to: BLM Alaska State Office, Attention – NPR-A IAP/EIS, 222 W. 7th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska 99513. Comments may also be faxed to (907) 271-5479 or submitted online at https://www.blm.gov/alaska/NPR-A-IAP-EIS. Comments must be received before the end of the scoping period to be included in the scoping report.  

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