Utah · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Dry Lake Archaeological District
BLM found a cultural value here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place 1 oil and gas lease inside the line today, and three grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 18,010 acres and was designated October 31, 2008, in the Price 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
Ground: USGS The National Map, topographic tiles. Boundaries: BLM's own, read Oct 20, 2026. The lease and 3 grazing allotments below aren't marked.The oil and gas leases
1 active oil and gas lease sits inside the line. 0 of it took effect before the area was designated on October 31, 2008.
- R & R ROYALTY LTD1lease
Grazing allotments
3 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- Saucer Basin134,627acres
- San Rafael River64,187acres
- Horsebench42,582acres
The nearest areas
- Ten Mile WashUtah · 4,988 acres · at least 7 mining claims BLM lists as Filed, a grazing allotment covering part of it8miles
- Bowknot BendUtah · 1,087 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it15miles
- Uranium Mining DistrictsUtah · 1,939 acres · at least 56 active mining claims and 20 more BLM lists as Filed, 1 right of way, a grazing allotment covering part of it18miles
- Heritage SitesUtah · 9.8 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it22miles
- Big Flat TopsUtah · 192 acres · 2 grazing allotments covering part of it26miles
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 Dry Lake Archaeological District. 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