Oregon · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
North Fork John Day River
BLM found a scenic value here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place 3 rights of way inside the line today, and five grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 16,808 acres and was designated April 1, 2015, in the John Day Basin RMP. 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
The rights of way
3 rights of way sit inside the line. BLM files 3 under non-energy facilities.
- LOUISIANA PACIFIC CO1right of way
- OREGON - DEPARTMENT FISH & WILDLIFE1right of way
- OREGON - DEPARTMENT TRANSPORTATION - WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS SECTION1right of way
Grazing allotments
5 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- Allotment USFS-GRZ-10004.01047113,485acres
- DOHERTY P JOE SHEEP5,746acres
- NORTH FORK5,387acres
- WILLIAM HEALY4,237acres
- MUD SPRINGS3,803acres
The nearest areas
- John Day PaleontologyOregon/Washington · 31,527 acres · 4 rights of way, 31 grazing allotments covering part of it47miles
- Hunt MountainOregon/Washington · 1,237 acres · nothing placed inside53miles
- Unity Reservoir Bald Eagle Nest HabitatOregon/Washington · 356 acres · 5 grazing allotments covering part of it55miles
- Black Canyon - POregon/Washington · 6,639 acres · 3 grazing allotments covering part of it57miles
- Armstrong CanyonOregon/Washington · 3,882 acres · 1 right of way, a grazing allotment covering part of it65miles
More from BLM's Oregon/Washington office
Every area BLM's Oregon/Washington 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 North Fork John Day River. 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