Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision for the Environmental Impact Statement on the Schoodic General Management Plan Amendment, Acadia National Park, ME, 65132-65133 [E6-18756]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• National Park Service

[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 215 (Tuesday, November 7, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65132-65133]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-18756]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision for the 
Environmental Impact Statement on the Schoodic General Management Plan 
Amendment, Acadia National Park, ME

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision for the 
Environmental Impact Statement on the Schoodic General Management Plan 
Amendment, Acadia National Park, Maine.

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SUMMARY: The National Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of 
the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Schoodic General Management Plan 
Amendment, Acadia National Park, Maine. Acadia National Park includes 
2,366 acres on the Schoodic Peninsula, which offers exceptional views 
of the rocky coast and surrounding islands in an uncrowded environment 
and attracts approximately 250,000 visits a year. The Schoodic District 
contains two ``Rare Natural Communities'' (Jack Pine Woodland and 
Maritime Shrubland), several rare plant species, and significant 
wildlife habitat, as identified by the Maine Natural Areas Program. 
Schoodic also protects pristine intertidal areas, exemplary geologic 
features, and extraordinary scenery. In addition, much of the Schoodic 
District is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic 
Places because of its historically significant cultural landscape.
    In 2002, the NPS acquired a former navy base located within the 
Schoodic District. The former base contains 36 major buildings, 
totaling approximately 206,000 square feet. Only two buildings on the 
former navy base, the Rockefeller Building (a 1935 apartment and office 
building) and its powerhouse, are eligible for listing in the National 
Register of Historic Places.
    This ROD documents the decision by the NPS to implement the 
preferred alternative (Alternative C--Collaborative Management) of the 
Schoodic General Management Plan Amendment as the selected action. 
Under this alternative, the NPS will develop the Schoodic Education and 
Research Center (SERC) at the former navy base to facilitate research 
and education that promotes the understanding, protection, and 
conservation of natural and cultural resources of the National Park 
System and advance related research and education at the regional, 
national, and international levels.
    The NPS will enter into a long-term cooperative agreement with an 
independent nonprofit organization to assist in carrying out the 
mission of SERC. The cooperative agreement will include the assignment 
of real property to the nonprofit organization for its direct use and 
possible reassignment to tenant partners. The nonprofit organization 
will, among other responsibilities, promote appropriate research and 
education, cultivate and facilitate partnerships, and manage facilities 
and services at SERC. The nonprofit organization will have sufficient 
autonomy to be creative and flexible in developing and managing SERC 
consistent with NPS laws, regulations, policies, and management 
documents. A full range of revenue-generating and fundraising 
approaches will be used to support SERC to ensure that its programs and 
activities are financially viable.
    The NPS will collaborate with the nonprofit organization and other 
partners at SERC to provide research and educational opportunities. The 
NPS will provide security, law enforcement, emergency medical services, 
and fire protection for the SERC campus, and maintain its roads, 
grounds, building envelopes, and utility systems. The NPS and nonprofit 
organization will share responsibilities for site renovation and 
construction to convert buildings to research and education use and 
facilitate the efficient reuse of the site. The NPS will redesign the 
landscape of the former navy base to create a suitable setting for 
research and education activities, minimize impervious surfaces, and 
improve its appearance. Incompatible elements that diminish the safety, 
appearance, or efficient use of the campus will be mitigated or 
removed.
    The NPS will manage resources and visitor use consistent with the 
management zone in which they are located. The NPS will implement 
management actions to ensure that

[[Page 65133]]

natural, cultural, and scenic resources and values are protected, and 
the character of the Schoodic District is preserved. The NPS will 
encourage compatible land use adjacent to the park on the Schoodic 
Peninsula and surrounding islands through acquisition of conservation 
easements and participation in the land use planning and regulatory 
processes of the State of Maine and neighboring jurisdictions. The NPS 
will also cooperate with the State of Maine, local governments, and 
others to achieve collective goals, such as land protection, mutual aid 
for emergency medical services and fire protection, and management of 
the Schoodic National Scenic Byway.
    The ROD briefly discusses the selected action, other alternatives 
considered, basis for decision, and measures to minimize impacts and 
address public concerns.

ADDRESSES: The ROD and supporting documents can be found online at 
https://www.nps.gov/acad/schoodic/home.htm. Copies of the ROD are 
available on request from: John T. Kelly, Park Planner, Acadia National 
Park, P.O. Box 177, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609. Telephone: (207) 288-8703.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John T. Kelly, Park Planner, Acadia 
National Park, P.O. Box 177, Bar Harbor, Maine 04609. Telephone: (207) 
288-8703.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NPS completed an environmental impact 
statement for the Schoodic General Management Plan Amendment in 2005, 
consistent with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, and 
Council of Environmental Quality regulations (40 CFR part 1500). The 
NPS published a Notice of Intent to prepare an environmental impact 
statement in the Federal Register on July 29, 2002 (FR Doc. 02-19096, 
Vol. 67, No. 145, Page 49034), which formally initiated the 
environmental impact statement process. The Environmental Protection 
Agency noticed the availability of the draft environmental impact 
statement in the Federal Register on September 24, 2004 (FR Doc. 04-
21492, Vol. 69, No. 185, Pages 57277-57278), which initiated a 60-day 
public comment period that ended November 23, 2004. The Environmental 
Protection Agency noticed the availability of the final environmental 
impact statement in the Federal Register on February 3, 2006 (FR Doc. 
E6-1510, Vol. 71, No. 23, Pages 5837--5838), which initiated a 30-day 
no action period. The final environmental impact statement described 
and analyzed the environmental impacts of two action alternatives and a 
no-action alternative. The NPS has selected the preferred alternative 
for implementation, as presented in the final environmental impact 
statement.
    Acadia National Park began with the establishment of Sieur de Monts 
National Monument by Presidential Proclamation 1339 in 1916 (40 Stat. 
1173), which was followed by the redesignation of the national monument 
as Lafayette National Park in 1919 (45 Stat. 1083). In 1929, 
legislation (45 Stat. 1083) changed the named to Acadia National Park 
and established the NPS's authority to expand the park through 
donations of property within Hancock County and certain islands in Knox 
County. This allowed the NPS to accept the donation of more than 2,000 
acres on the Schoodic Peninsula as an addition to Acadia National Park.
    Several laws have been enacted that are specific to the Schoodic 
District. In 1935, the first of these laws (49 Stat. 795) provided for 
the exchange of land between the NPS and U.S. Navy. The act transferred 
the control and jurisdiction of a 26-acre site within the Schoodic 
District to the U.S. Navy for ``naval radio purposes.'' In 1947, 
legislation (61 Stat. 519) transferred an additional 152 acres to the 
U.S. Navy with the provision that the land would revert to the park 
should it become ``surplus to the needs of the Department of the 
Navy.'' In 1977, the U.S. Navy exercised this provision and transferred 
81 acres back to the park. In 2002, Section 2845 of Public Law 107-107 
authorized transfer of the original parcel back to the park without 
consideration, along with buildings and personal property associated 
with the land. The law directed the U.S. Navy to transfer this parcel 
concurrently with the remaining land it had acquired in 1947. The U.S. 
Navy transferred control and jurisdiction of its remaining land within 
Acadia National Park (100 acres) to the NPS on July 1, 2002.
    Public Law 107-206, enacted in 2002, directed the Secretary of 
Defense to obligate the funds made available under Public Law 107-117 
for the conversion of the former navy base at Schoodic to a research 
and education center for Acadia National Park. In addition, Public Law 
107-248, enacted in 2002, authorized the Secretary of Defense to use 
the funding for community adjustment activities related to the closure 
of the navy base and the reuse of the base as a research and education 
center consistent with the purposes of Acadia National Park.
    Public Law 95-625, the National Parks and Recreation Act, requires 
the preparation and timely revision of a general management plan for 
each unit of the national park system. Section 604 of that act 
describes the requirements for general management plans as including: 
``(1) measures for the preservation of the area's resources; (2) 
indications of types and general intensities of development * * * 
associated with public enjoyment and use of the area* * *; (3) 
identification of and implementation commitments for visitor carrying 
capacities for all areas of the unit; and (4) indications of potential 
modifications to the external boundaries of the unit and the reasons 
therefor.''
    The NPS completed a general management plan for Acadia National 
Park in 1992; however, it does not address the transfer of the former 
navy base at Schoodic to the NPS. The primary purpose of the Schoodic 
General Management Plan Amendment is to provide guidance for future 
use, management, and development of the former navy base. The Schoodic 
General Management Plan Amendment identifies the mission, goals, and 
planning issues for the Schoodic District. It also provides a framework 
for guiding future decisions and outlines long-term, collaborative 
strategies for protecting park resources, providing high-quality 
visitor experiences, expanding partnership opportunities, and providing 
for efficient park operations.

    Dated: September 26, 2006.
Chrysandra L. Walter,
Acting Regional Director, Northeast Region.
[FR Doc. E6-18756 Filed 11-6-06; 8:45 am]
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