(a) Guidance for preparation and amendment of resource management plans may be provided by the Director and State Director, as needed, to help the Field Manager and staff prepare a specific plan. Such guidance may include the following:

(1) National level policy which has been established through legislation, regulations, executive orders or other Presidential, Secretarial or Director approved documents. This policy may include appropriately developed resource management commitments, such as a right-of-way corridor crossing several resource or field office areas, which are not required to be reexamined as part of the planning process.

(2) Analysis requirements, planning procedures and other written information and instructions required to be considered in the planning process.

(3) Guidance developed at the State Director level, with necessary and appropriate governmental coordination as prescribed by §1610.3 of this title. Such guidance shall be reconsidered by the State Director at any time during the planning process that the State Director level guidance is found, through public involvement or other means, to be inappropriate when applied to a specific area being planned.

(b) A resource management plan shall be prepared and maintained on a resource or field office area basis, unless the State Director authorizes a more appropriate area.

(c) An interdisciplinary approach shall be used in the preparation, amendment and revision of resource management plans as provided in 40 CFR 1502.6. The disciplines of the preparers shall be appropriate to the values involved and the issues identified during the issue identification and environmental impact statement scoping stage of the planning process. The Field Manager may use any necessary combination of Bureau of Land Management staff, consultants, contractors, other governmental personnel, and advisors to achieve an interdisciplinary approach.

[48 FR 20368, May 5, 1983, as amended at 70 FR 14566, 14567, Mar. 23, 2005; 70 FR 29208, May 20, 2005; 81 FR 89661, Dec. 12, 2016; 82 FR 60555, Dec. 21, 2017]