[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 103 (Thursday, May 29, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Page 32084]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-13339]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


General Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement, Montezuma 
Castle National Monument and Tuzigoot National Monument, Arizona

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an environmental impact statement 
for the general management plan, Montezuma Castle National Monument and 
Tuzigoot National Monument, Arizona.

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SUMMARY: Under the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act, 
the National Park Service is preparing an environmental impact 
statement for the general management plan for Montezuma Castle National 
Monument and Tuzigoot National Monument, Arizona. The environmental 
impact statement will be approved by the Director, Intermountain 
Region.
    Montezuma Castle National Monument and Tuzigoot National Monument 
are located in Yavapai County, Arizona. Montezuma Castle was 
established in 1906 under the authority of the Antiquities Act. The 
proclamation states it ``* * * is of the greatest ethnological value 
and scientific interest * * *'' (Presidential Proclamation No. 696, 
December 8, 1906, 34 Stat. 3265). Montezuma Well was added in 1943 as a 
detached unit of the monument with an act of Congress (October 19, 
1943, 57 Stat. 572).
    Tuzigoot National Monument was established by presidential 
proclamation on July 25, 1939. The proclamation states that ``certain 
Government-owned lands in the State of Arizona have situated there on 
historic and prehistoric structures and other historic objects of 
historic or scientific interest, and * * * it would be in the public 
interest to reserve such lands as a national monument to be known as 
Tuzigoot National Monument.'' Public Law 95-625 (March 1978) expanded 
the boundary by approximately 791 acres.
    The general management plan will prescribe the resource conditions 
and visitor experiences to be achieved and maintained in the monuments 
over the next 15 to 20 years. The clarification of what must be 
achieved according to law and policy will be based on review of the 
monuments' purpose, significance, special mandates, and the body of 
laws and policies directing management of the monuments. Management 
decisions to be made where law, policy, or regulations do not provide 
clear guidance or limits will be based on the purpose of the monuments, 
the range of public expectations and concerns, resource analysis, an 
evaluation of the natural, cultural, and social impacts of alternative 
courses of action, and consideration of long-term economic costs. Based 
on determinations of desired conditions, the general management plan 
will outline the kinds of resource management activities, visitor 
activities, and development that would be appropriate in the monuments 
in the future. Alternatives will be developed through this planning 
process and will include, at a minimum, the no-action and preferred 
alternative.
    Major issues include protection of natural and cultural resources, 
providing for visitor enjoyment and understanding, and evaluating 
potential boundary expansions. Potential partnerships will be explored 
with other agencies, organizations, and local interests.

DATES: The National Park Service will conduct public scoping for 60-
days from the date of publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register. Open houses regarding the general management plan will be 
held during the public scoping period. Specific dates, times, and 
locations will be announced in the local media and will also be 
available by contacting the superintendent of Montezuma Castle and 
Tuzigoot National Monuments.

ADDRESSES: Throughout the scoping and planning process, information 
will be available for public review and comment in the office of the 
superintendent (Kathy M. Davis, Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National 
Monuments, PO Box 219, Camp Verde, AZ 86322-0219).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Superintendent Kathy M. Davis, 
Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National Monuments, PO Box 219, Camp 
Verde, AZ 86322-0219: TEL (928) 567-5276; FAX: (928) 567-3597; e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: If you wish to comment on the general 
management planning process for Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National 
Monuments, or on any issues associated with the plan, you may submit 
your comments by any one of several methods. You may mail comments to 
Superintendent Kathy M. Davis, Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National 
Monuments, PO Box 219, Camp Verde, AZ 86322-0219. You may also e-mail 
comments to [email protected]. You may also hand-deliver comments 
to the Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National Monuments visitor 
centers. Our practice is to make comments, including names and home 
addresses of respondents, available for public review during regular 
business hours. Individual respondents may request that we withhold 
their home address from the record, which we will honor to the extent 
allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in which we would 
withhold from the record a respondent's identity, as allowable by law. 
If you wish us to withhold your address, you must state this 
prominently at the beginning of your comments. We will make all 
submissions from organizations or businesses and from individuals 
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations 
or businesses available for public inspection in their entirety.

    Dated: May 1, 2003.
Karen P. Wade,
Director, Intermountain Region.
[FR Doc. 03-13339 Filed 5-28-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-EJ-P