General Management Plan; City of Rocks National Reserve, Cassia County, ID; Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement, 42915-42917 [E9-20438]
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 163 / Tuesday, August 25, 2009 / Notices
District composed of tent cabins
surrounding a single-story bathroom
building.
• Removal of Dream Lake Dam and
allowing the area to revert to a riparian/
wetland complex.
Alternative 3 includes:
• Restoration of Warner Valley fen
through selective damming of ditches.
• Creating a concession housing and
service center outside the Drakesbad
Historic District composed of a twostory dormitory building with
bathrooms.
• Reconstruct Dream Lake Dam to
Bureau of Reclamation engineering
standards.
Scoping and Public Involvement: A
preliminary scoping effort for the
Warner Valley comprehensive plan was
initiated on June 1, 2004, with posting
of a request at the Drakesbad Guest
Ranch Lodge for comments about
potential future management options for
the upper valley area. Public meetings
for the Warner Valley Comprehensive
Site Plan were held during June 13–15,
2005, in Red Bluff, Chester, and
Vacaville. Meeting announcements were
printed in the Red Bluff Daily News,
Chester Progressive, Redding Record
Searchlight, and the Sacramento Bee (20
additional media outlets, including
newspaper, radio stations, and
television stations were also notified).
The formal scoping phase was initiated
on June 24, 2005, with publication in
the Federal Register of the Notice of
Intent to prepare an EIS. Approximately
700 public scoping announcements
were distributed including details of
date, time, and location of the public
open houses. These outreach activities
elicited information from individuals,
agencies, and organizations which aided
the alternatives formulation and
environmental impact analysis
processes.
Previously, public scoping meetings
were held for the Dream Lake Dam
Management Plan during November 4–
7, 2002, in the Chico, Red Bluff,
Redding, and Chester. The same media
outlets mentioned above were notified.
Formal public scoping for the original
Dream Lake Dam Management Plan was
initiated on April 4, 2003, with
publication of a Notice of Intent to
prepare an EIS in the Federal Register.
This initial conservation planning effort
was expanded into the broader Warner
Valley Comprehensive Site Plan as it
became apparent that separate planning
projects would be more time consuming
to accomplish. All comments obtained
throughout the extended scoping effort
have been fully considered in preparing
this DEIS.
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Comments: The DEIS will be sent to
affected Federal, Tribal, State, and local
government agencies, to interested
parties, and all those requesting copies
(specify compact disc or paper format).
The document will be available at park
headquarters and at local public
libraries, and will also be posted on the
Lassen Volcanic National Park Web site
(https://www.nps.gov/lavo) and on the
NPS Planning, Environment and Public
Comment Web site (https://
parkplanning.nps.gov/lavo). All written
comments must be postmarked or
transmitted not later than November 21,
2009. Periodically updated project
information will be announced via
regional and local press media and
posted on the project Web sites.
Written comments may be submitted
by letter to Lassen Volcanic National
Park, Warner Valley DEIS, P.O. Box 100,
Mineral, CA 96063 (or may be
transmitted electronically to https://
parkplanning.nps.gov/lavo). Public
meetings will be hosted in Chester,
Anderson and Vacaville during
September 2–9, 2009; details including
time and location will be posted on the
Lassen Volcanic National Park Web site
(see above). Questions regarding status
of project planning may be directed to
Sean Eagan (530.595.4444 ext 5176 or
via e-mail sean_eagan@nps.gov).
All comments are maintained in the
project’s administrative record and will
be available for public review at Lassen
Volcanic National Park Headquarters.
Before including your address, phone
number, e-mail address, or other
personal identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that
your entire comment—including your
personal identifying information—may
be made publicly available at any time.
While you can ask us in your comments
to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
Decision Process: Following careful
analysis of all comments as may be
forthcoming in response to the DEIS, at
this time it is anticipated that the Final
EIS would be completed in November
2009. The availability of the final
document will be similarly announced
in the Federal Register, and also
publicized via local and regional press
media, direct mailings, and Web site
postings. No sooner than thirty days
after the distribution of the Final EIS a
Record of Decision may be executed. As
a delegated EIS the approving official
responsible for the final decision is the
Regional Director, Pacific West Region.
Subsequently, the official responsible
for implementing the approved
Comprehensive Site Plan will be the
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42915
Superintendent, Lassen Volcanic
National Park.
Dated: May 13, 2009.
Jonathan B. Jarvis,
Regional Director, Pacific West Region.
[FR Doc. E9–20437 Filed 8–24–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312–60–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
General Management Plan; City of
Rocks National Reserve, Cassia
County, ID; Notice of Intent to Prepare
an Environmental Impact Statement
SUMMARY: In accordance with § 102(2)
(C) of the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321, et
seq.), the National Park Service (NPS) is
undertaking a conservation planning
and environmental impact analysis
process for creating a new General
Management Plan (GMP) for City of
Rocks National Reserve (Reserve),
Idaho. A Land Protection Plan would
accompany the GMP and provide
priorities for both cultural and natural
resource protection needs. The Land
Protection Plan is particularly needed to
guide future land acquisition strategies
for this unit of the National Park System
due to the complex ownership of
private, state, and federal land. The
GMP is intended to serve as a
‘‘blueprint’’ to guide management of
natural and cultural resources and
visitor use during the next 15–20 years.
One or more development concept
plans, which guide more detailed, sitespecific preservation and development,
may also be included with the GMP.
Consistent with NPS Planning Program
Standards, the new GMP will: (1)
Describe the Reserve’s purpose,
significance, and primary interpretive
themes; (2) identify the fundamental
resources and values of the Reserve, its
other important resources and values,
and describe the condition of these
resources; (3) describe desired
conditions for cultural and natural
resources and visitor experiences
throughout the Reserve; (4) develop
management zoning to support these
desired conditions; (5) develop
alternative applications of these
management zones to the Reserve’s
landscape (i.e. zoning alternatives); (6)
address user capacity; (7) analyze
potential boundary modifications; (8)
ensure that management
recommendations are developed in
consultation with interested
stakeholders and the public and
adopted by NPS leadership after an
adequate analysis of the benefits,
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 163 / Tuesday, August 25, 2009 / Notices
environmental impacts, and economic
costs of alternative courses of action; (9)
develop cost estimates implementing
each of the alternatives; and (10)
identify and prioritize subsequent
detailed studies, plans and actions that
may be needed to implement the
updated GMP.
Scoping Process: The purpose of this
scoping outreach effort is to elicit early
public feedback regarding issues and
concerns, nature and extent of potential
environmental impacts (and appropriate
mitigations), and GMP alternatives
which should be addressed in the
preparing the EIS. Through the outreach
activities planned during the scoping
phase, the NPS will compile suggestions
from the public regarding resource
protection, visitor use, and land
management—questions to be posed
will include: (1) What is most valued
about City of Rocks National Reserve?
(2) What are the important issues facing
the Reserve? (3) Imagining a visit to City
of Rocks National Reserve 20 years from
now, describe what you would like to
experience. (4) Do the purpose and
significance statements capture the
essence of City of Rocks National
Reserve?
All scoping comments must be
postmarked or transmitted not later that
November 15, 2009. Comments may be
transmitted electronically through the
NPS Planning, Environment, and Public
Comment Web site https://
parkplanning.nps.gov/ciro. If it is more
convenient, written comments may be
sent to: General Management Plan, Attn:
Wallace Keck, Superintendent, City of
Rocks National Monument, P.O. Box
169, Almo, Idaho 83312. Before
including your address, phone number,
e-mail address, or other personal
identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that
your entire comment—including your
personal identifying information—may
be made publicly available at any time.
While you can ask us in your comment
to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
Beginning in mid-September, a series
of public meetings will be hosted in
Almo, Burley, Pocatello, Boise, and
Ketchem, Idaho. Detailed information
including dates, times, and specific
locations for these meetings will be
posted on the GMP Web site at https://
www.nps.gov/ciro/parkmgmt/plan.htm.
All attendees will be given the
opportunity to ask questions and
provide comments to the planning team.
The GMP Web site will provide the
most up-to-date information regarding
the project, including project
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22:52 Aug 24, 2009
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description, planning process updates,
meeting notices, reports and documents,
and useful links associated with the
project.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Reserve was established in 1988 and is
operating with an outdated 1994
comprehensive management plan
(CMP). Production of a new GMP to
replace the CMP is required by
Cooperative Agreement between the
National Park Service and Idaho Parks
and Recreation Department, as well as a
joint 2009 Operation Plan and
Guidelines for Management of the
Reserve. Major changes have occurred
in NPS management, policy, land
ownership, and practices that directly
affect the Reserve. The preliminary
spectrum of issues to be addressed in
the GMP are as follows:
Cultural Resource Protection and
Preservation: The Reserve was
established ‘‘to preserve and protect the
significant historical and cultural
resources’’ related to the California Trail
which passed through the City of Rocks
between 1843–1882. These resources
include emigrant inscriptions, trail ruts,
and landscape characteristics that
contributed to prominence of City of
Rocks along the trail. The Reserve also
manages other cultural resources related
to Native Americans in the area before
the California Trail era, and
homesteading and ranching which postdate the California Trail. These
resources include archeological sites,
remnants of homesteads, as well as
archival and museum objects. The GMP
will explore various preservation
treatment options, management
strategies, and design guidelines for the
protection of a wide variety of cultural
resources. Some cultural sites, such as
Boise-Kelton Stage Station, are located
on private land within the Reserve and
contain important historic remnants of
the California Trail or homesteading
period. Managing cultural resources on
both private and public land presents
challenges, such as protection from
vandalism, weathering, and impacts
from visitor use and livestock grazing.
Natural Resource Protection: The
Reserve is home to a diversity of plant
and animal life, as well as the dramatic
granite rock formations. Invasive
species, visitor activities, and grazing
can impact these resources. The GMP
will explore management needed for
natural resource protection. In addition,
the GMP will re-evaluate management
of the City of Rocks Research Natural
Area (RNA), status which was inherited
from the BLM and USFS when the
Reserve was established. This 312-acre
area within the Reserve was designated
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for its outstanding natural features,
natural processes, natural diversity, and
ecological values. It contains unique
geologic formations and the northern
limit of the pinyon-juniper forest type in
North America. As part of the GMP
process, current status of RNA resources
will be reviewed, and a determination
will be made as to which recreational
uses, if any, might be appropriate within
the RNA, whether the RNA designation
should remain, and whether other areas
of the Reserve with biological diversity
should be considered for such
designation.
Soundscape/Natural Quiet: Natural
sounds are a fundamental resource of
the Reserve, once referred to as the
‘‘Silent City of Rocks’’. Military and
commercial overflights, especially at
night, have an impact on both visitor
experience and wildlife. Reserve
operations and visitor activities can also
contribute to the deterioration of the
natural soundscape. Baseline acoustical
monitoring has recently been conducted
to measure and record the sounds of the
Reserve. The GMP will present
recommendations to maintain natural
sounds and natural quiet.
Air Quality and Night Skies: Air
quality in and around southern Idaho is
some of the most pristine in the nation,
but it has shown steady deterioration
over the last ten years. Pristine airsheds
are a fundamental resource of the
Reserve and visitor surveys indicate that
air quality and scenic vistas are among
the most highly valued characteristics of
the Reserve. Southern Idaho is also one
of the best places in the U.S. for viewing
night skies. The GMP will evaluate ways
to protect viewsheds, particularly vistas
associated with the California National
Historic Trail that bisects the Reserve,
and to protect the night sky in and
around the Reserve.
Climate Change: The potential effects
of global climate change may include
changes in temperature, precipitation,
evaporation and snowpack rate, local
weather patterns, wildfire frequency,
and plant communities. Planning and
management actions will allow the
Reserve to minimize its greenhouse gas
emissions, adapt to climate change, and
interpret changing conditions. The GMP
will provide guidance on how the
Reserve will assess, respond to, and
interpret the impacts of global climate
change on resources.
Operations/Facilities: The Reserve has
an on-going need for staffing, funding,
and facilities. The visitor center
proposed in the 1994 CMP has yet to be
constructed on leased BLM land near
the Almo entrance into the Reserve—an
opportunity exists to develop an
interagency visitor center that would
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meet needs of the Reserve, the adjacent
Castle Rocks State Park, and
neighboring land managing agencies.
Also, there are insufficient employee
housing options on either Reserve
administered land or in the local
community. The GMP will guide
planning for these facilities.
Visitor Experience: Visitors come to
the Reserve to enjoy the scenery, and to
climb, hike, and recreate in other ways.
Visitation to the Reserve is increasing,
and the demographics of visitors are
trending to younger adult visitors (25–
35 years) and smaller group sizes. As
the visiting population shifts, their
interests and preferred activities may
also change. The GMP will use current
visitor survey data to comprehensively
address available visitor facilities,
activities, and programs. Day use and
camping will be evaluated taking into
consideration camping opportunities on
adjacent public and private lands. A
comprehensive look at the trail system
with associated parking, picnicking, and
trailheads will be completed as part of
the GMP. The GMP will also provide
guidance on other recreational uses,
such as hunting and equestrian use,
including locating staging areas and any
related facilities.
Evaluation of Boundaries: The
National Parks and Recreation Act of
1978, as amended, requires that GMPs
consider adequacy of existing
boundaries. When the Reserve was
established, it was assumed that the
private lands and associated ranching
within the boundary would remain part
of the Reserve. Since then, many of the
landowners have opted to sell their land
to the NPS. Planning for these acquired
lands will be addressed in the GMP. The
GMP will also determine if any changes
to the boundary are appropriate based
on resource protection, visitor use, and
land management needs. National
Historic Landmark and National Natural
Landmark boundaries that overlay the
Reserve are configured differently from
each other and neither covers the entire
Reserve. Also, the Cassia County
Historic Preservation Zone does not
cover the entire Reserve, and therefore
may not fully protect the cultural and
natural resources and presents some
management challenges. The GMP will
consider recommendations for these
boundaries so that they might be
consistent with the extent of the Reserve
boundary.
Transportation/Circulation: Access
and transportation within and through
the Reserve includes motorized use and
people on foot, horses, and bicycles.
Parking is available in both day use and
overnight camping areas, but overflow
parking often takes place on roadsides,
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22:52 Aug 24, 2009
Jkt 217001
creating safety concerns and causing
erosion. Staging areas for equestrian use
have similar issues. Some visitors
merely pass through the Reserve on
scenic drives along the City of Rocks
road. City of Rocks Backcountry Byway
is an unpaved road that runs through
the Reserve; this route also has erosion
issues, due to seasonal weather
conditions and alignment on
disintegrating granite soils. The road is
currently managed by Cassia County,
which poses some challenges for
Reserve staff when maintenance is
needed. The GMP will recommend
appropriate road maintenance
standards, including identifying
appropriate practices for drainage and
erosion control along the Byway. The
GMP will also examine an array of
potential management options for the
City of Rocks Backcountry Byway, and
consider all forms of motorized and
non-motorized transportation and
evaluate circulation patterns, parking,
and other transportation options.
Decision Process: Upon conclusion of
the scoping phase and following due
consideration of public concerns and
comments from other agencies, a Draft
EIS\GMP will be prepared and released
for public review. Availability of the
forthcoming Draft EIS for public review
and written comment will be formally
announced in the Federal Register, as
well as through local and regional news
media, direct mailing to the project
mailing list, and via the Internet.
Following careful consideration of all
agency and public comment as may be
received, a Final EIS will be prepared;
at this time it is anticipated that the
final plan will be available in 2013. As
a delegated EIS, the official responsible
for the final decision on the proposed
plan is the Regional Director, Pacific
West Region, National Park Service.
Subsequently, the official responsible
for implementation of the approved
GMP would be the Superintendent, City
of Rocks National Reserve.
Dated: July 13, 2009.
Patricia L. Neubacher,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific West Region.
[FR Doc. E9–20438 Filed 8–24–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312–DB–P
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42917
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
New Merced Wild and Scenic River
Comprehensive Management Plan;
Yosemite National Park; Madera and
Mariposa Counties, CA; Notice of
Extension of Public Scoping Period for
Environmental Impact Statement
SUMMARY: Pursuant to § 102(2)(c) of the
National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (Pub. L. 91–190 as amended), the
National Park Service, Department of
the Interior, will prepare a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)
for a Comprehensive Management Plan
which will guide future management of
the Merced River corridor in Yosemite
National Park during the next 10–15
years. The Notice of Intent to prepare
the EIS was published in the Federal
Register on June 30, 2009 (with a 60-day
public scoping period originally set to
conclude on August 29, 2009). In
deference to general public interest
expressed to date by interested
individuals, local entities, and
concerned organizations, the scoping
period has been extended.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Any
individual, organization, agency, or
other interested parties are encouraged
to provide written comments—any
further responses must now be
postmarked or transmitted no later than
December 4, 2009. Comments already
provided in response to the June 30,
2009 Notice of Intent need not be
resubmitted. All written responses
should be addressed to the
Superintendent, Attn: Merced River
Plan, P.O. Box 577, Yosemite National
Park, CA 95389, or may be sent via the
Internet to yose_planning@nps.gov or
submitted via FAX to (209) 379–1294.
Before including your address, phone
number, e-mail address, or other
personal identifying information, you
should be aware that your entire
comment—including your personal
identifying information—may be made
publicly available at any time. While
you can ask us in your comment to
withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
Public meetings originally planned to
be hosted during late July and August
will be rescheduled for September–
October. To request meeting details
(pending confirmation) or to be
included on the Comprehensive
Management Plan mailing list, contact
the park at the address or e-mail noted
above, or via telephone at (209) 379–
1365.
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 163 (Tuesday, August 25, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42915-42917]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-20438]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
General Management Plan; City of Rocks National Reserve, Cassia
County, ID; Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement
SUMMARY: In accordance with Sec. 102(2) (C) of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.), the
National Park Service (NPS) is undertaking a conservation planning and
environmental impact analysis process for creating a new General
Management Plan (GMP) for City of Rocks National Reserve (Reserve),
Idaho. A Land Protection Plan would accompany the GMP and provide
priorities for both cultural and natural resource protection needs. The
Land Protection Plan is particularly needed to guide future land
acquisition strategies for this unit of the National Park System due to
the complex ownership of private, state, and federal land. The GMP is
intended to serve as a ``blueprint'' to guide management of natural and
cultural resources and visitor use during the next 15-20 years. One or
more development concept plans, which guide more detailed, site-
specific preservation and development, may also be included with the
GMP. Consistent with NPS Planning Program Standards, the new GMP will:
(1) Describe the Reserve's purpose, significance, and primary
interpretive themes; (2) identify the fundamental resources and values
of the Reserve, its other important resources and values, and describe
the condition of these resources; (3) describe desired conditions for
cultural and natural resources and visitor experiences throughout the
Reserve; (4) develop management zoning to support these desired
conditions; (5) develop alternative applications of these management
zones to the Reserve's landscape (i.e. zoning alternatives); (6)
address user capacity; (7) analyze potential boundary modifications;
(8) ensure that management recommendations are developed in
consultation with interested stakeholders and the public and adopted by
NPS leadership after an adequate analysis of the benefits,
[[Page 42916]]
environmental impacts, and economic costs of alternative courses of
action; (9) develop cost estimates implementing each of the
alternatives; and (10) identify and prioritize subsequent detailed
studies, plans and actions that may be needed to implement the updated
GMP.
Scoping Process: The purpose of this scoping outreach effort is to
elicit early public feedback regarding issues and concerns, nature and
extent of potential environmental impacts (and appropriate
mitigations), and GMP alternatives which should be addressed in the
preparing the EIS. Through the outreach activities planned during the
scoping phase, the NPS will compile suggestions from the public
regarding resource protection, visitor use, and land management--
questions to be posed will include: (1) What is most valued about City
of Rocks National Reserve? (2) What are the important issues facing the
Reserve? (3) Imagining a visit to City of Rocks National Reserve 20
years from now, describe what you would like to experience. (4) Do the
purpose and significance statements capture the essence of City of
Rocks National Reserve?
All scoping comments must be postmarked or transmitted not later
that November 15, 2009. Comments may be transmitted electronically
through the NPS Planning, Environment, and Public Comment Web site
https://parkplanning.nps.gov/ciro. If it is more convenient, written
comments may be sent to: General Management Plan, Attn: Wallace Keck,
Superintendent, City of Rocks National Monument, P.O. Box 169, Almo,
Idaho 83312. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail
address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you
should be aware that your entire comment--including your personal
identifying information--may be made publicly available at any time.
While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we
will be able to do so.
Beginning in mid-September, a series of public meetings will be
hosted in Almo, Burley, Pocatello, Boise, and Ketchem, Idaho. Detailed
information including dates, times, and specific locations for these
meetings will be posted on the GMP Web site at https://www.nps.gov/ciro/parkmgmt/plan.htm. All attendees will be given the opportunity to ask
questions and provide comments to the planning team. The GMP Web site
will provide the most up-to-date information regarding the project,
including project description, planning process updates, meeting
notices, reports and documents, and useful links associated with the
project.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Reserve was established in 1988 and is
operating with an outdated 1994 comprehensive management plan (CMP).
Production of a new GMP to replace the CMP is required by Cooperative
Agreement between the National Park Service and Idaho Parks and
Recreation Department, as well as a joint 2009 Operation Plan and
Guidelines for Management of the Reserve. Major changes have occurred
in NPS management, policy, land ownership, and practices that directly
affect the Reserve. The preliminary spectrum of issues to be addressed
in the GMP are as follows:
Cultural Resource Protection and Preservation: The Reserve was
established ``to preserve and protect the significant historical and
cultural resources'' related to the California Trail which passed
through the City of Rocks between 1843-1882. These resources include
emigrant inscriptions, trail ruts, and landscape characteristics that
contributed to prominence of City of Rocks along the trail. The Reserve
also manages other cultural resources related to Native Americans in
the area before the California Trail era, and homesteading and ranching
which post-date the California Trail. These resources include
archeological sites, remnants of homesteads, as well as archival and
museum objects. The GMP will explore various preservation treatment
options, management strategies, and design guidelines for the
protection of a wide variety of cultural resources. Some cultural
sites, such as Boise-Kelton Stage Station, are located on private land
within the Reserve and contain important historic remnants of the
California Trail or homesteading period. Managing cultural resources on
both private and public land presents challenges, such as protection
from vandalism, weathering, and impacts from visitor use and livestock
grazing.
Natural Resource Protection: The Reserve is home to a diversity of
plant and animal life, as well as the dramatic granite rock formations.
Invasive species, visitor activities, and grazing can impact these
resources. The GMP will explore management needed for natural resource
protection. In addition, the GMP will re-evaluate management of the
City of Rocks Research Natural Area (RNA), status which was inherited
from the BLM and USFS when the Reserve was established. This 312-acre
area within the Reserve was designated for its outstanding natural
features, natural processes, natural diversity, and ecological values.
It contains unique geologic formations and the northern limit of the
pinyon-juniper forest type in North America. As part of the GMP
process, current status of RNA resources will be reviewed, and a
determination will be made as to which recreational uses, if any, might
be appropriate within the RNA, whether the RNA designation should
remain, and whether other areas of the Reserve with biological
diversity should be considered for such designation.
Soundscape/Natural Quiet: Natural sounds are a fundamental resource
of the Reserve, once referred to as the ``Silent City of Rocks''.
Military and commercial overflights, especially at night, have an
impact on both visitor experience and wildlife. Reserve operations and
visitor activities can also contribute to the deterioration of the
natural soundscape. Baseline acoustical monitoring has recently been
conducted to measure and record the sounds of the Reserve. The GMP will
present recommendations to maintain natural sounds and natural quiet.
Air Quality and Night Skies: Air quality in and around southern
Idaho is some of the most pristine in the nation, but it has shown
steady deterioration over the last ten years. Pristine airsheds are a
fundamental resource of the Reserve and visitor surveys indicate that
air quality and scenic vistas are among the most highly valued
characteristics of the Reserve. Southern Idaho is also one of the best
places in the U.S. for viewing night skies. The GMP will evaluate ways
to protect viewsheds, particularly vistas associated with the
California National Historic Trail that bisects the Reserve, and to
protect the night sky in and around the Reserve.
Climate Change: The potential effects of global climate change may
include changes in temperature, precipitation, evaporation and snowpack
rate, local weather patterns, wildfire frequency, and plant
communities. Planning and management actions will allow the Reserve to
minimize its greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to climate change, and
interpret changing conditions. The GMP will provide guidance on how the
Reserve will assess, respond to, and interpret the impacts of global
climate change on resources.
Operations/Facilities: The Reserve has an on-going need for
staffing, funding, and facilities. The visitor center proposed in the
1994 CMP has yet to be constructed on leased BLM land near the Almo
entrance into the Reserve--an opportunity exists to develop an
interagency visitor center that would
[[Page 42917]]
meet needs of the Reserve, the adjacent Castle Rocks State Park, and
neighboring land managing agencies. Also, there are insufficient
employee housing options on either Reserve administered land or in the
local community. The GMP will guide planning for these facilities.
Visitor Experience: Visitors come to the Reserve to enjoy the
scenery, and to climb, hike, and recreate in other ways. Visitation to
the Reserve is increasing, and the demographics of visitors are
trending to younger adult visitors (25-35 years) and smaller group
sizes. As the visiting population shifts, their interests and preferred
activities may also change. The GMP will use current visitor survey
data to comprehensively address available visitor facilities,
activities, and programs. Day use and camping will be evaluated taking
into consideration camping opportunities on adjacent public and private
lands. A comprehensive look at the trail system with associated
parking, picnicking, and trailheads will be completed as part of the
GMP. The GMP will also provide guidance on other recreational uses,
such as hunting and equestrian use, including locating staging areas
and any related facilities.
Evaluation of Boundaries: The National Parks and Recreation Act of
1978, as amended, requires that GMPs consider adequacy of existing
boundaries. When the Reserve was established, it was assumed that the
private lands and associated ranching within the boundary would remain
part of the Reserve. Since then, many of the landowners have opted to
sell their land to the NPS. Planning for these acquired lands will be
addressed in the GMP. The GMP will also determine if any changes to the
boundary are appropriate based on resource protection, visitor use, and
land management needs. National Historic Landmark and National Natural
Landmark boundaries that overlay the Reserve are configured differently
from each other and neither covers the entire Reserve. Also, the Cassia
County Historic Preservation Zone does not cover the entire Reserve,
and therefore may not fully protect the cultural and natural resources
and presents some management challenges. The GMP will consider
recommendations for these boundaries so that they might be consistent
with the extent of the Reserve boundary.
Transportation/Circulation: Access and transportation within and
through the Reserve includes motorized use and people on foot, horses,
and bicycles. Parking is available in both day use and overnight
camping areas, but overflow parking often takes place on roadsides,
creating safety concerns and causing erosion. Staging areas for
equestrian use have similar issues. Some visitors merely pass through
the Reserve on scenic drives along the City of Rocks road. City of
Rocks Backcountry Byway is an unpaved road that runs through the
Reserve; this route also has erosion issues, due to seasonal weather
conditions and alignment on disintegrating granite soils. The road is
currently managed by Cassia County, which poses some challenges for
Reserve staff when maintenance is needed. The GMP will recommend
appropriate road maintenance standards, including identifying
appropriate practices for drainage and erosion control along the Byway.
The GMP will also examine an array of potential management options for
the City of Rocks Backcountry Byway, and consider all forms of
motorized and non-motorized transportation and evaluate circulation
patterns, parking, and other transportation options.
Decision Process: Upon conclusion of the scoping phase and
following due consideration of public concerns and comments from other
agencies, a Draft EIS\GMP will be prepared and released for public
review. Availability of the forthcoming Draft EIS for public review and
written comment will be formally announced in the Federal Register, as
well as through local and regional news media, direct mailing to the
project mailing list, and via the Internet. Following careful
consideration of all agency and public comment as may be received, a
Final EIS will be prepared; at this time it is anticipated that the
final plan will be available in 2013. As a delegated EIS, the official
responsible for the final decision on the proposed plan is the Regional
Director, Pacific West Region, National Park Service. Subsequently, the
official responsible for implementation of the approved GMP would be
the Superintendent, City of Rocks National Reserve.
Dated: July 13, 2009.
Patricia L. Neubacher,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific West Region.
[FR Doc. E9-20438 Filed 8-24-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-DB-P
