Utah · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Cottonwood Canyon
BLM found a natural system, a cultural value, a scenic value, a natural process and a natural hazard here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place 1 right of way inside the line today, and five grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 3,759 acres and was designated October 31, 2008, in the Kanab Field Office 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
1 right of way sits inside the line. BLM files 1 under non-energy facilities.
- FREDONIA CITY OF1right of way
Grazing allotments
5 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- Art Canyon10,390acres
- Trail Canyon8,947acres
- Kinnikinnic Spring6,004acres
- Farm Canyon4,391acres
- Water Canyon3,850acres
The nearest areas
- ShinarumpArizona · 3,238 acres · at least 1 active mining claim, 4 grazing allotments covering part of it12miles
- Lone ButteArizona · 1,759 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it17miles
- Johnson SpringArizona · 3,445 acres · 7 grazing allotments covering part of it18miles
- Canaan MountainUtah · 33,955 acres · 1 right of way, 12 grazing allotments covering part of it20miles
- Kanab CreekArizona · 13,147 acres · at least 12 active mining claims, 7 grazing allotments covering part of it21miles
More from BLM's Utah office
Every area BLM's Utah 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 Cottonwood Canyon. 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