The National Park Service Seeks Public Comment on the Development of a Cumberland Parks Forest Pest Management Plan Environmental Assessment

The National Park Service Seeks Public Comment on the Development of a Cumberland Parks Forest Pest Management Plan Environmental Assessment

Sunday, July 8, 2012

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The National Park Service is accepting public comments pertaining to development of the Cumberland Parks Forest Pest Management Plan Environmental Assessment (EA). The scoping period will begin July 1, 2012, and extend through August 1, 2012. Comments will be used to assist the parks in developing and evaluating feasible alternatives and analyzing the environmental consequences of each alternative.

The National Park Service is planning to prepare an Environmental Assessment (EA) for a Forest Pest Management Plan for the following parks located in the Southeast Region: Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park (KY), Andrew Johnson National Historic Site (TN), Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area (TN/KY), Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park (GA), Cumberland Gap National Historical Park (KY/TN/VA), Mammoth Cave National Park (KY), and Obed Wild and Scenic River (TN).

The Cumberland Parks Forest Pest Management Plan EA will be based on sound integrated pest management (IPM). Integrated pest management is defined as a decision-making process that coordinates knowledge of pest biology, the environment, and available technology to prevent unacceptable levels of pest damage, by cost-effective means, while posing the least possible risk to people and park resources. The purpose of the plan is to identify long-term management tools to reduce the impacts of (or threats from) invasive pests to natural and cultural resources and provide opportunities for restoring native plant communities and cultural landscapes.

The EA is intended to provide strategies for park staff to manage present and emergent forest pests within the designated boundaries of the parks. An EA will be prepared in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act to provide the decision-making framework that analyzes a reasonable range of alternatives to meet project objectives, evaluates issues and impacts to park resources and values, and identifies mitigation measures to lessen the degree or extent of these impacts.

The public scoping period for this EA will open on July 1, 2012, and will extend through August 1, 2012. Written comments should be postmarked no later than August 1, 2012. Comments may be submitted by mail, fax, email, or through the Planning, Environment, and Public Comment commenting system. Comments are typically treated as public record and made available for public review. Individuals may request that the NPS withhold their name and address from disclosure. Such requests will be honored to the extent allowable by law. Comments may be submitted by the following means:

Mail:

Superintendent
Attn: Forest Pest Management Plan Environmental Assessment
Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area
4564 Leatherwood Road
Oneida, Tennessee 37841

Phone: 423.569.9778; Fax: 423.569.5505; eMail

online: http://parkplanning.nps.gov/Scoping_FPMEA



Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

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Smokies seeks comments on elk management

Smokies seeks comments on elk management

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

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Officials at Great Smoky Mountains National Park are seeking public comment on the Park's plans to transition the management of its elk herd from an experiment to a long-term management strategy. Under provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) the public has 30 days to provide comments before the National Park Service can make a decision. Comments will be accepted through September 27th.

Elk were first released in the national park in 2001 as an experiment to determine whether they could re-populate the lands within the Smokies after a nearly 200-year absence. The Park and biologists from the University of Tennessee have been gathering data to assess the long-term viability of elk in the Smokies, along with evaluating the impacts of elk on the Park's natural and cultural resources, as well as their interaction with humans both in the Park and on surrounding lands.

Based upon the slow growth in numbers from 52 to about 125, including 25 new calves in 2010, officials have concluded that a sustainable elk population over the long term is viable. The Environmental Assessment is being performed to evaluate alternative strategies for making the transition from the management practices employed during the experiment release phase to a long-term elk management program.

The plan the park prefers would require less intensive monitoring of elk and would mean state and tribal wildlife agencies would handle issues with the animals outside the 500,000-acre park.

The public is invited to make comments, online, by clicking here, or sending written comments to:

Superintendent
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
107 Park Headquarters Road
Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

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