National Park Service December 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The National Park Service (NPS) is terminating preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the General Management Plan amendment, Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona. A Notice of Intent to prepare the EIS for the Petrified Forest National Park General Management Plan Amendment was published at 72 FR 159, pages 46244 and 46245, August 17, 2007. The National Park Service has since determined that an Environmental Assessment (EA) rather than an EIS is the appropriate level of environmental documentation for the plan.

This rule proposes to amend current regulations for designating bicycle use on National Park Service (NPS) lands. The proposed rule authorizes park superintendents to open existing trails to bicycle use within park units in accordance with appropriate park plans and compliance documents under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the National Historic Preservation Act, the NPS Organic Act, and the park's enabling legislation, and other applicable law. The proposed rule continues to require promulgation of a special regulation to build a new trail for bicycle use outside developed areas, or to open an existing trail to bicycle use if such action triggers one of the existing regulatory criteria requiring rulemaking in Section 1.5 of Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and Director's Order Number 12 (Conservation Planning, Environmental Impact Analysis, and Decision-Making) the NPS is preparing an EIS for a GMP for Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, located in Tennessee and Georgia. The GMP will prescribe the desired resource conditions and visitor experience opportunities that are to be achieved and maintained in the park over approximately the next 15 to 20 years. The park's purpose, significance, special mandates, and relevant laws and policies directing park management will be reviewed and assessed to establish the foundation for the GMP. The GMP will build upon these foundation elements to determine the appropriate type, level and location for resource management activities, visitor use, and potential development. In consultation with the park's stakeholders (i.e., government agencies, affiliated tribal representatives, partnership organizations, and other concerned members of the public), issues bearing on the long- term management of the park will be factored into the development of a reasonable range of management alternatives. The resource impacts and other anticipated consequences of implementing the planning alternatives will be assessed in the EIS. From initial discussions among NPS planners, park staff and partners, issues that are anticipated to be addressed by the GMP will include (but are not limited to) the following: Long-term management of the battlefield landscape to achieve objectives for restoring historic viewsheds and protecting important cultural and natural resources; articulation of resource stewardship and visitor management prescriptions for the recently acquired Moccasin Bend National Archeological District; determination of a range of appropriate and compatible visitor activities in the park; and, identification of opportunities for collaboration and partnership with community leaders and other entities to ensure park values are understood and considered in local decision making (e.g., viewshed protection and adjacent land- use).

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C), the National Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the White- tailed Deer Management Plan (FEIS) for Catoctin Mountain Park in Thurmont, Maryland. The plan will support forest regeneration and provide for long-term protection, conservation, and restoration of native species and cultural landscapes at Catoctin Mountain Park. The document describes four management alternatives which include a no action alternative (continue existing management) and three action alternatives, one of which was identified as the preferred alternative.

Pursuant to 36 CFR 51.23, public notice is hereby given that the National Park Service proposes to extend the following expiring concession contracts for a period of up to 1 year, or until such time as a new contract is executed, whichever occurs sooner.

This rule will manage winter visitation and recreational use in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. Publication of this final rule in the Federal Register complies with the November 7, 2008 order of the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming in Wyoming v. United States Department of the Interior, Case Nos. 07-CV-0319-B, 08-CV-00004- B, which reinstated the 2004 final rule on winter use in the parks, without its sunset provisions.

Pursuant to Section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(C)), the National Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Final General Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement (GMP/ EIS), Pipestone National Monument (national monument), Minnesota. On September 30, the Midwest Regional Director approved the ROD for the project. As soon as practicable, the NPS will begin to implement the preferred alternative contained in the final EIS. The NPS will implement the preferred alternative as described in the Final GMP/EIS issued on March 28, 2008. Alternative 1, the preferred alternative, will reduce the development in the heart of the national monument, preserving its setting, site history, and spiritual significance as the source of pipestone. The NPS will remove the visitor center and parking, enabling visitors to see the site much as it appeared prior to 1937. The national monument will acquire a parcel of school district land to the northeast and will seek a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to coordinate management of the 100- acre Pipestone Wildlife Management Area. American Indian ceremonial use of the Three Maidens area will be unchanged. The Hiawatha Club will continue to use the Three Maidens as a backdrop for its pageant under permit restrictions, and the area will be restored to prairie. Sun Dances will continue, but modifications of use might be made on the basis of impact and the sustainability of resources. Quarries will continue to be allocated by permit. The GMP/EIS evaluated this course of action and two other action alternatives, and a no action alternative. The full range of foreseeable environmental consequences were assessed and appropriate mitigating measures were identified. The ROD includes a statement of the decision made, synopses of other alternatives considered, the basis for the decision, a description of the environmentally preferable alternative, a finding on impairment of park resources and values, a listing of measures to minimize environmental harm, and an overview of public involvement in the decisionmaking process.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, theNational Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the White-tailed Deer Management Plan for Valley Forge National Historical Park, Pennsylvania. The purpose of the DEIS is to evaluate a range of alternatives for establishing a white-tailed deer management plan that supports forest regeneration and provides for long-term protection, preservation, and restoration of native vegetation and other natural and cultural resources. The DEIS evaluates four alternatives for managing white-tailed deer in the park. Alternatives for response to chronic wasting disease (CWD) have been integrated into each deer management alternative to address the elevated risk of disease in proximity to the park and because of the efficiencies and cost savings associated with incorporating CWD response into the deer management plan. The DEIS describes and analyzes the environmental impacts of three action alternatives and the no-action alternative. When approved, the plan will guide deer management actions over the next 15 years.