On August 8, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced new steps to implement the Public Lands Rule that was finalized in April 2024. The agency will create a Federal Advisory Committee that will “allow the BLM to continue working with and hearing from a range of experts and the public to support successful implementation of the rule. The Committee will represent a broad and diverse range of stakeholders and interests, and will help inform outreach and engagement, advise on best management practices, and participate in the development of agency guidance to support implementation.”

In addition, the agency released Instruction Memoranda (IM), Information Bulletins (IB), and Manuals to provide policy direction and guidance to the agency’s 12 state and 175 field offices that will implement the Rule. These documents can be modified and updated as new information or best practices become available.

The guidance documents include:

• Restoration Prioritization & Planning IM<
• Watershed Condition Assessment IM
• Land Health Standards IM
• Restoration and Mitigation Leasing IM
• Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) Manual
• Inventory & Monitoring of Ecological Resources Manual
• Land Use Planning Requirements IB

“The Public Lands Rule provides essential tools that will help the Bureau improve and conserve the health of the lands we’ve been entrusted with for present and future generations,” said BLM Director Tracy Stone-Manning. “With this guidance and the announcement of our advisory committee, we are showing our work, demonstrating how this rule will look in practice and asking the public to help inform our implementation so we can make good on our obligation to protect and conserve the health of our public lands.”