---
kind: "section"
citation: "43 C.F.R. § 3515.16"
title: "43"
number: "3515.16"
heading: "What standards does BLM use to assess the public interest of an exchange?"
url: "https://uscodex.org/cfr/43/3515.16"
---

# §3515.16. What standards does BLM use to assess the public interest of an exchange?


BLM must find that the exchange is in the public interest under the following criteria:

- (a) The benefits of production from your existing lease or preference right to a lease would not outweigh the adverse effects on, or threat of damage or destruction to:
  - (1) Agricultural production potential;
  - (2) Scenic values;
  - (3) Biological values including threatened or endangered species habitat;
  - (4) Geologic values;
  - (5) Archeological, historic or other cultural values;
  - (6) Other public interest values such as recreational use;
  - (7) Residential or urban areas;
  - (8) Potential inclusion in the wilderness or wild and scenic rivers systems; or
  - (9) **Other public uses, including public highways, airports, and rights-of-way from lease operations.**
- (b) The lands proposed for exchange must be free from hazardous waste as defined under the authorities of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act ([33 U.S.C. 1251](/usc/33/1251.md)), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ([42 U.S.C. 6901](/usc/42/6901.md)) and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act ([42 U.S.C. 9601](/usc/42/9601.md)).

## Notes

### Authority

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552; 30 U.S.C. 189, 192c, and 209; 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.; and sec. 402, Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1946 (5 U.S.C. appendix).

### Source

Source: 64 FR 53536, Oct. 1, 1999, unless otherwise noted.