Montana · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Powderville
BLM found a natural system here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place no claim, lease or right of way inside the line today, and ten grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 9,518 acres and was designated September 21, 2015, in the Miles City RMP (2015). 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
Ground: USGS The National Map, topographic tiles. Boundaries: BLM's own, read Oct 20, 2026. The 10 grazing allotments below aren't marked.Grazing allotments
10 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- MALLETT25,888acres
- BLAIR16,572acres
- TOOKE RANCH14,345acres
- HOWELL5,529acres
- WHITETAIL CREEK4,286acres
- NORTH JOHNSTONE3,157acres
- SUNSET2,679acres
- DRY CREEK AMP1,682acres
- TALKINGTON906acres
- WHITETAIL CREEK903acres
The nearest areas
- WalsteinMontana/Dakotas · 1,519 acres · 2 grazing allotments covering part of it40miles
- Finger ButtesMontana/Dakotas · 1,521 acres · 4 grazing allotments covering part of it42miles
- HoeMontana/Dakotas · 145 acres · 1 right of way, a grazing allotment covering part of it61miles
- Reynolds BattlefieldMontana/Dakotas · 928 acres · 4 grazing allotments covering part of it68miles
- Powder River DepotMontana/Dakotas · 1,964 acres · 1 right of way, 5 grazing allotments covering part of it70miles
More from BLM's Montana/Dakotas office
Every area BLM's Montana/Dakotas 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 Powderville. 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