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Pactola in the Winter - Photo by Top Dog Publishing
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BREAKING NEWS!
Date: Thursday, December 26, 2024
Contact: [email protected]
Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes Protections for the Pactola Reservoir—Rapid Creek Watershed
WASHINGTON — Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland has signed Public Land Order 7956, finalizing protections for the Pactola Reservoir–Rapid Creek Watershed on the Black Hills National Forest from the potential effects of mineral exploration and development. This order follows a request from the U.S. Forest Service to close 20,510 acres of National Forest System land to sale or exchange and mineral entry and leasing, for a 20-year period, subject to valid existing rights. Non-federal lands and minerals are not subject to the withdrawal.
This action responds to requests from Tribes and the local community to protect important cultural and natural resources in Pennington County, South Dakota as well as the municipal water supplies for Rapid City and Ellsworth Air Force Base. With 14 miles of shoreline and depths of 150 feet, Pactola Reservoir is the largest and deepest reservoir in the Black Hills National Forest.
"The Pactola Reservoir-Rapid Creek Watershed is a treasured landscape, valued for its clean air and water, abundant recreation and ecological benefits, and sacred to multiple Tribes who call the area home,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “I’m proud to take action today to withdraw this area for the next 20 years, to help protect clean drinking water and ensure this special place is protected for future generations.”
“We’re grateful to Secretary Haaland for her decision to withdraw these lands to protect their many invaluable resources,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “The Pactola Reservoir–Rapid Creek Watershed provides so many benefits to the people and communities we serve, from clean water to world-class recreation, from livestock grazing to the spaces our Tribal communities consider sacred, this withdrawal will safeguard this space for decades.”
The scenic Pactola Reservoir–Rapid Creek Watershed is home to world class fishing and hunting opportunities, cross-country skiing, and a broad range of year-round activities like hiking, camping and boating. Local ranchers also rely on the Pactola for summer grazing.
The area is considered a sacred landscape and traditional spiritual homeland by the Oceti Sakowin, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Arikara, Hidatsa, Mandan and Crow Tribes. The Black Hills, including the lands of the withdrawn area, contain sites sacred to these Tribes as well as areas they consider traditional cultural properties, important landscapes and areas where the Tribes pick medicine, hold spiritual ceremonies, and gather sacred foods.
The withdrawal is made pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, which authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to withdraw federal lands aggregating 5,000 acres or more for a maximum of 20 years, subject to renewal. Only Congress can legislate a permanent withdrawal of this type.
The U.S. Forest Service initiated the proposal in March 2023, when the Bureau of Land Management published the application for withdrawal, opening a 90-day public comment period and noticing public meetings. The Forest Service and BLM also conducted two Tribal consultations in 2023.
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SOURCE: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDOI/bulletins/3c95518
Contact: [email protected]
Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes Protections for the Pactola Reservoir—Rapid Creek Watershed
WASHINGTON — Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland has signed Public Land Order 7956, finalizing protections for the Pactola Reservoir–Rapid Creek Watershed on the Black Hills National Forest from the potential effects of mineral exploration and development. This order follows a request from the U.S. Forest Service to close 20,510 acres of National Forest System land to sale or exchange and mineral entry and leasing, for a 20-year period, subject to valid existing rights. Non-federal lands and minerals are not subject to the withdrawal.
This action responds to requests from Tribes and the local community to protect important cultural and natural resources in Pennington County, South Dakota as well as the municipal water supplies for Rapid City and Ellsworth Air Force Base. With 14 miles of shoreline and depths of 150 feet, Pactola Reservoir is the largest and deepest reservoir in the Black Hills National Forest.
"The Pactola Reservoir-Rapid Creek Watershed is a treasured landscape, valued for its clean air and water, abundant recreation and ecological benefits, and sacred to multiple Tribes who call the area home,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “I’m proud to take action today to withdraw this area for the next 20 years, to help protect clean drinking water and ensure this special place is protected for future generations.”
“We’re grateful to Secretary Haaland for her decision to withdraw these lands to protect their many invaluable resources,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “The Pactola Reservoir–Rapid Creek Watershed provides so many benefits to the people and communities we serve, from clean water to world-class recreation, from livestock grazing to the spaces our Tribal communities consider sacred, this withdrawal will safeguard this space for decades.”
The scenic Pactola Reservoir–Rapid Creek Watershed is home to world class fishing and hunting opportunities, cross-country skiing, and a broad range of year-round activities like hiking, camping and boating. Local ranchers also rely on the Pactola for summer grazing.
The area is considered a sacred landscape and traditional spiritual homeland by the Oceti Sakowin, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Arikara, Hidatsa, Mandan and Crow Tribes. The Black Hills, including the lands of the withdrawn area, contain sites sacred to these Tribes as well as areas they consider traditional cultural properties, important landscapes and areas where the Tribes pick medicine, hold spiritual ceremonies, and gather sacred foods.
The withdrawal is made pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, which authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to withdraw federal lands aggregating 5,000 acres or more for a maximum of 20 years, subject to renewal. Only Congress can legislate a permanent withdrawal of this type.
The U.S. Forest Service initiated the proposal in March 2023, when the Bureau of Land Management published the application for withdrawal, opening a 90-day public comment period and noticing public meetings. The Forest Service and BLM also conducted two Tribal consultations in 2023.
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SOURCE: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDOI/bulletins/3c95518
The Pactola Reservoir-Rapid Creek Watershed Withdrawal proposal received over 1900 comments. The public has spoken with the majority being in favor of the 20,574 acre Withdrawal. Thank you for taking action and commenting. We will keep you updated as we learn more.
What to help beyond the Pactola Reservoir-
Rapid Creek Watershed Withdrawal?
Let’s Protect Water, Wildlife, and You for more then 20 years!
Let's make the entire Rapid Creek Watershed an Official "Recreation Area".
"Our goal is to have the federally-controlled surface and subsurface lands within the Rapid Creek/Castle Creek watershed upstream from Rapid City designated as a recreation area and subject to a mineral claim withdrawal." - RCWA
The Rapid Creek watershed is located in the central Black Hills and includes significant cultural resources, including Pe’ Sla, a key Lakota cultural site. The watershed is also important because it provides the water for the state’s second-largest municipality, Rapid City, for Ellsworth Air Force Base, and for reservations, smaller communities, and agriculture along the creek as it flows to the Cheyenne and Missouri Rivers.
The Rapid Creek watershed upstream from Rapid City in the Black Hills National Forest is primarily used for recreation. Activities include hunting, fishing, bicycling, motorcycling, snowmobiling, boating, swimming, hiking, bird-watching, camping, equestrian activities, and ATV/UTV riding. Outdoor recreation brought $2.27 billion in direct and indirect income and 48,000 jobs to South Dakota in 2017. Direct spending on hunting alone in the Black Hills is about $89 million.
The Rapid Creek watershed and its connected groundwater aquifers provides clean water for the state’s second-largest municipality, Rapid City.
FACTS:
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What's a "recreation area"?
There are two basic types of recreation areas on land that is controlled by the federal government, including land controlled by the Forest Service. Some recreation areas are designated by the U. S. Congress, as we are working to do for the Rapid Creek watershed, and are permanent (unless the law is revoked). An example of this is the Sheridan Lake recreation area in the central Black Hills (Sheridan Lake is not in the Rapid Creek watershed). This recreation area includes grazing, in addition to recreation opportunities and a business.
The second type of federal recreation area is administrative, rather than done by Congress. It is created by the federal agency that controls the land, and it lasts for 20 years. In most of the central Black Hills, this controlling federal agency is the U.S. Forest Service. The Pactola Reservoir area is an example of an administrative recreation area.
The second type of federal recreation area is administrative, rather than done by Congress. It is created by the federal agency that controls the land, and it lasts for 20 years. In most of the central Black Hills, this controlling federal agency is the U.S. Forest Service. The Pactola Reservoir area is an example of an administrative recreation area.
Why Now?Rapid Creek, called Mniluzahan (“mni” means water; “luzahan” means fast) by the Lakota, was recently designated as one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers because of the criticality of the watershed and the problems that could be associated with gold exploration and mining. Designating the Rapid Creek watershed west of Rapid City — of which Castle Creek is a part — as a recreation area will allow the existing land uses to continue without disruption from hard rock minerals exploration or mining on public lands or claims. Gold mining has consistently resulted in numerous water contamination problems.
Designating the Rapid Creek watershed above Rapid City as a recreation area would also mean withdrawing mining claims that have not been “proven” and protecting the area from threatened large-scale mining. A "mineral withdrawal" means that mining claims would be eliminated. Exploration and mining would not be permitted where the surface or the subsurface of the land is federally-controlled. Central Black Hills communities choose an agriculture-and recreation-based economy. 
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The recreation opportunities of the Rapid Creek watershed provides area residents and visitors with a variety of ways to escape to the beautiful great outdoors.
How Will We Move Forward?Creating a designated recreation area will require action by the U.S. Congress. We are working to engage everyone in our area to encourage our South Dakota Congressional delegation to submit legislation that would create a Rapid Creek watershed recreation area with mineral withdrawal. Contact them today.
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