National Park Service February 1, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice is a solicitation on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior for nominations to fill a vacancy on the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Review Committee. Nominations may be submitted by Indian tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, and traditional Native American religious leaders. Nominees must be traditional Native American religious leaders. Appointments are made by the Secretary of the Interior.

Pursuant to Civil Action No. 03-04 (RMC), The Wilderness Society v. Gale Norton, January 10, 2005, and in accordance with National Park Service (NPS) Management Policies 2001 section 6.2.1, the NPS has completed a Wilderness Suitability Assessment to determine if lands within Redwood National Park meet criteria indicating suitability for preservation as wilderness. The Redwood National Park staff reviewed management related documents that discussed potential wilderness, reviewed existing resource conditions, and weighed this information against Primary Suitability Criteria, section 6.2.1.1, of Management Policies 2001. Since the expansion of Redwood National Park in 1978, the park has undertaken an intense watershed rehabilitation program with a focus on removing roads. Since park expansion in 1978, about 219 miles of road have been removed and another 123 miles are proposed for removal within the Redwood Creek portion of the park. The 1999 Final General Management/General Plan and FEIS for Redwood National and State Parks states that until watershed restoration activities are completed that no wilderness area will be proposed. The 1979 General Management Plan concluded that a wilderness recommendation would be premature until rehabilitation efforts are completed because of the continuing need for large construction vehicles and the maintenance and heavy use of roads, activities inconsistent with wilderness designation. Based on these findings, the NPS has concluded that the lands within Redwood National Park do not warrant further study for wilderness evaluation at this time. However, following successful completion of watershed restoration activities in 12-15 years, or during the next General Management Plan effort, reconsideration of wilderness suitability for certain tracts of land within Redwood Creek could be warranted.