[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 248 (Tuesday, December 28, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77774-77775]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-28297]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Environmental Statements; Record of Decision: Pictured Rocks 
National Lakeshore, MI

AGENCY: National Park Service, Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of a Record of Decision on the Final 
Environmental Impact Statement for the General Management Plan/
Wilderness Study, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969, Public Law 91-190, 83 Stat. 852, 853, as codified 
as amended at 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C), the National Park Service (NPS) 
announces the availability of the Record of Decision (ROD) for the 
General Management Plan/Wilderness Study (GMP/WS), Pictured Rocks 
National Lakeshore (PIRO), Michigan. The Midwest Regional Director has 
approved the ROD for the GMP/WS. Specifically, the NPS has selected the 
preferred alternative as described in the Final General Management/
Wilderness Study/Environmental Impact Statement (FGMP/WS/EIS). Under 
the selected action, the NPS will provide additional and more 
convenient access to significant national lakeshore features, thus 
expanding opportunities for visitor use in the national lakeshore. 
Natural ecological processes will be allowed to occur, and restoration 
programs will be initiated where necessary. Federal lands in the Beaver 
Basin area in the national lakeshore (about 16 percent of the 
lakeshore) will be proposed for designation as wilderness. Vehicular 
access to Little Beaver Lake campground will remain, however structures 
within the proposed wilderness will be removed. Other roads in Beaver 
Basin will be closed and converted to trails or allowed to revert to 
natural vegetation. To accommodate possible increased use and to 
increase ease of access in the portion of the national lakeshore not 
proposed for wilderness, certain roads will be upgraded (upgrading 
portions of County Road H-58 will be recommended), and a drive-in 
campground in the Miners area and a boat-in campsite on Grand Sable 
Lake will be added. Operational facilities will be consolidated at the 
ends of the national lakeshore for efficiency. The selected action and 
four other alternatives were analyzed in the draft and final EIS. The 
full range of foreseeable environmental consequences was assessed.
    Among the alternatives the NPS considered, the selected action best 
protects PIRO's natural and cultural resources, and its core wilderness 
resource, while also providing a range of quality recreational and 
educational experiences. It also meets NPS goals for managing the 
lakeshore, and meets national environmental policy goals. The preferred 
alternative will not result in the impairment of resources and values.
    The ROD includes a statement of the decision made, synopses of 
other alternatives considered, the basis for the decision, the 
rationale for why the selected action is the environmentally preferred 
alternative, a finding of no impairment of park resources and values, 
and an overview of public involvement in the decision-making process.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Gustin, Superintendent, Pictured 
Rocks National Lakeshore, P.O. Box 40, N8391 Sand Point Rd., Munising, 
MI 49862-0040, or by calling 906-387-2607. The official responsible for 
this decision is Ernest Quintana, the Regional Director, Midwest 
Region.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Copies of the ROD may be obtained from the 
contact listed above or may be viewed

[[Page 77775]]

online at http://www.nps.gov/piro.htm. With the concurrence of the NPS 
Director, the wilderness proposal will be sent to the Assistant 
Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the Secretary of the 
Interior, who may revise or approve the proposal. The Secretary may 
then forward a wilderness recommendation to the President, who in turn 
may approve or revise the recommendation and then transmit the 
recommendation to Congress for consideration.

    Approved: November 23, 2004.
Ernest Quintana,
Regional Director.
[FR Doc. 04-28297 Filed 12-27-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-52-P