Asked how much was involved, Murphy replied that he did not "have a clue how much acreage they're interested in." The field manager was not available on Wednesday.

Two other projects indicate the military is working to increase security, to protect members of the public who might hike or drive into the region.

• A cleanup of "scrap metal" resulting from World War II training and bombing activities is planned for land that surrounds "the military reservations in Tooele and Box Elder Counties," says a notice posted on the BLM's Salt Lake Field Office electronic bulletin board.

The BLM contact listed for the cleanup project could not be reached Wednesday. Military reservations abutting BLM land in this region are the two UTTR sections and Dugway.

• Warning signs are in the works for the UTTR. This involves the UTTR southern area, south of I-80. Nearby is an area called Knolls, which has extensive sand dunes that are popular with recreationists.

A signing project is planned for public land adjacent to this part of the UTTR, on the west side of the Cedar Mountains, according to a BLM notice. The project would "warn off-highway vehicle users of the dangers of unexploded ordnance and the boundary of the U.S. Air Force range."

The boundary between BLM land and the training range runs through sand dunes, said the BLM's Mandy Rigby. Fencing dunes is a difficult procedure, she said.

There have been instances where people have driven all-terrain vehicles in the sand dunes and have gone into the bombing range, she said.

Eighteen signs will be erected on BLM land warning that the Air Force boundary is nearby and that people should not trespass, she said. The signs also will tell of the danger of picking up unexploded ordnance.

The signs have been made and will be put up soon, she said.

They will be erected every quarter-mile along a key route heading toward the test range, Rigby said.

Lt. Rob Goza, spokesman for Hill Air Force Base, which controls the test range, said a meeting is scheduled today to discuss where to place the signs.

"Obviously, the purpose is to keep people from straying into the UTTR," he said.

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Contributing: Lee Davidson.

E-mail: bau@desnews.com