Idaho · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Boulder Creek ONA
BLM found a natural system and a wildlife resource here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place at least 4 mining claims BLM lists as Filed inside the line today, and ten grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 6,987 acres and was designated December 30, 1999, in the Owyhee RMP 1999. In the plan's name, RMP stands for resource management plan.
One of the 1,120 places the Bureau of Land Management has designated an Area of Critical Environmental Concern. This page shows its line, what BLM found there and what sits inside it.
The line
Who holds the claims
At least 4 claims sit inside this line: 0 active and 4 filed and pending, 4 with a holder BLM names. BLM lists 4 as Filed. None of the 4 claims was located before the area was designated.
- Discovery Alaska LLC4claims
BLM's mining rules list designated ACECs among the places where mining that disturbs the surface beyond casual use needs a plan of operations BLM approves. Exploration of five acres or less can go ahead on a notice instead.
Grazing allotments
10 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- West Antelope11,735acres
- Blackbird Point5,819acres
- Upper Deer Creek4,859acres
- South Mtn Indv4,523acres
- Boulder Flat4,431acres
- Combination Creek4,209acres
- Big Field FFR2,760acres
- Lower Deer Creek2,501acres
- Bachelor Flat FFR2,192acres
- Kershner FFR867acres
The nearest areas
- Cinnabar Mountain RNAIdaho · 278 acres · 3 grazing allotments covering part of it12miles
- North Fork Juniper Woodland ONAIdaho · 4,412 acres · 3 grazing allotments covering part of it17miles
- Pleasant Valley Table RNAIdaho · 1,469 acres · 2 grazing allotments covering part of it18miles
- Sommercamp Butte RNAIdaho · 440 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it20miles
- Coal Mine Basin RNAIdaho · 2,397 acres · at least 40 mining claims BLM lists as Filed, 4 grazing allotments covering part of it28miles
More from BLM's Idaho office
Every area BLM's Idaho office holdsThe proposed rule
A proposed rule, RIN 1004-AF53, would change how BLM drafts every land use plan, and how it designates ACECs like Boulder Creek ONA. The comment window hasn't opened: the proposed rule wasn't in the Federal Register at our last check. The Watch sends one email the day it prints.
The rule's abstract
The purpose of this rulemaking is to establish in regulations an updated process for the approval of the development, revision, amendment, and maintenance of land use plans, as provided for by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, for public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Additionally, this rulemaking will provide clarification of the process the BLM uses for designating Areas of Critical Environmental Concern.Unified Agenda entry for RIN 1004-AF53, Publication ID 2026, reginfo.gov (OMB OIRA), read Oct 18, 2026