[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 79 (Tuesday, April 26, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21440-21441]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-8308]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Revised Draft Backcountry Management Plan, General Management 
Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement, Denali National Park 
and Preserve, AK

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Revised Draft Backcountry 
Management Plan, General Management Plan Amendment and Environmental 
Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: The National Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of 
the Revised Draft Backcountry Management Plan, General Management Plan 
Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Denali National 
Park and Preserve. The document describes and analyzes the 
environmental impacts of a preferred alternative and three action 
alternatives for managing the park and preserve's backcountry. A no 
action alternative also is evaluated. This notice announces the 60-day 
public comment period and solicits comments on the revised draft plan 
and EIS.

DATES: Written comments on the revised draft plan and EIS must be 
received no later than June 27, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the revised draft plan and EIS should be 
submitted to the Superintendent, Denali National Park and Preserve, 
Post Office Box 9, Denali Park, Alaska 99755. Submit electronic 
comments to [email protected]. The revised draft EIS may be 
viewed online at http://www.nps.gov/dena through the ``in Depth'' link 
on our homepage under ``Planning and Management.'' Hard copies or CDs 
of the Revised Draft Backcountry Management Plan and General Management 
Plan Amendment and EIS are available by request from the aforementioned 
address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mike Tranel, Chief of Planning, Denali 
National Park and Preserve. Telephone: (907) 644-3611.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Park Service (NPS) is preparing 
a revised draft backcountry management plan and accompanying EIS that 
amends the 1986 General Management Plan for Denali National Park and 
Preserve. The purpose of the plan and EIS is to formulate a 
comprehensive plan for the backcountry, including designated 
wilderness, of Denali National Park and Preserve that will provide 
management direction over the next 15-20 years. The backcountry of 
Denali National Park and Preserve is defined to include the entire park 
except for those areas designated specifically for development in the 
entrance area and along the road corridor. Many issues to be addressed 
in the backcountry management plan, however, would affect the entire 
park, including developed areas. The NPS has initiated this management 
plan and EIS to address the rapidly growing level and diversity of 
uses, resource management needs, and the anticipated demand for future 
uses not foreseen or addressed in the 1986 General Management Plan.
    The NPS developed a range of alternatives based on planning 
objectives, park resources, and public input. Each alternative 
represents a distinct vision for the park's backcountry. These 
alternatives describe actions related to management area designation, 
recreational activities, and administrative activities. Four 
alternatives in addition to a no-action alternative were developed.
    The draft backcountry management plan was distributed for public 
review in February 2003, with the public comment period ending on May 
30, 2003. The National Park Service received 9,370 comments on the 
draft plan. After careful consideration, the National Park Service 
concluded that alternatives presented in the draft would require 
significant modification to respond to the range of interests expressed 
in public comment. To give the public an opportunity to respond to

[[Page 21441]]

and contribute to further refinement of these modifications the 
National Park Service is publishing a Revised Draft. This draft 
contains four new alternatives and an accompanying Environmental Impact 
Statement. A Record of Decision is expected in the fall of 2005.
    Alternative 1 (No Action): Current and projected conditions under 
this alternative provide a baseline for evaluating the changes and 
impacts of the other action alternatives. The NPS would continue the 
present management direction, guided by the 1986 General Management 
Plan, the 1997 Entrance Area and Road Corridor Development Concept 
Plan, the 1997 South Side Denali Development Concept Plan, the 1997 
Strategic Plan, and backcountry management plans from 1976 and 1982. 
Recreational use and access patterns would continue to develop, and NPS 
would respond as necessary on a case-by-case basis. No new services or 
facilities would be developed to meet increased levels of use in the 
backcountry, except for those identified in the Entrance Area or South 
Side plans. This alternative represents ``no action'' for this plan. 
For all activities, the NPS would respond to changing use patterns as 
necessary to protect park resources, visitor safety, and visitor 
experience.
    Alternative 2: This alternative would distinguish a unique Denali 
experience based on dispersed use in a wilderness landscape with few 
sights or sounds of people or mechanized civilization. There would be 
few services, facilities, or signs of management presence. This 
alternative would most clearly distinguish the backcountry experience 
in Denali from the surrounding lands, providing a place primarily for 
visitors who are very self-reliant, and would include many 
opportunities for extended expeditions in very remote locations. 
Backcountry users seeking other experiences would find those 
opportunities on neighboring lands.
    Alternative 3: This alternative would provide opportunities for a 
variety of wilderness recreational activities by establishing areas to 
serve those visitors who want to experience the wilderness resource 
values of the Denali backcountry but require services, assistance, or 
have a limited amount of time. The areas would be the minimum necessary 
to provide these experiences based on present demand and would be 
focused along the park road in the Old Park and Kantishna and at the 
existing high activity areas at the Ruth Glacier and the Kahiltna Base 
Camp. The majority of the backcountry would be managed for dispersed, 
self-reliant travel and would include opportunities for extended 
expeditions in very remote locations.
    Alternative 4 (NPS Preferred Alternative): This alternative would 
also provide opportunities for a variety of wilderness recreational 
activities and experiences by establishing areas to serve those 
visitors who want to experience the wilderness resource values of the 
Denali backcountry but require services, assistance, or have a limited 
amount of time. However, the areas would be of sufficient size to 
accommodate anticipated growth in the next 20 years and would be 
focused along the park road in the Old Park and Kantishna; at the Ruth, 
Tokositna, and Kahiltna Glaciers; and in the Dunkle Hills/Broad Pass 
area. The remainder of the backcountry would be managed for dispersed, 
self-reliant travel and would include opportunities for extended 
expeditions in very remote locations.
    Alternative 5: This alternative would create two distinct 
geographic areas that provide different kinds of visitor experiences in 
the Denali backcountry. The Old Park and the Denali additions north of 
the Alaska Range would be primarily managed for dispersed, self-reliant 
travel although no areas would be managed specifically to preserve 
opportunities for extended expeditions in remote locations. Areas along 
the park road and in Kantishna that presently receive a relatively high 
volume of use and large parts of the additions south of the Alaska 
Range would be managed for a greater intensity and variety of 
appropriate recreational activities and would have more visible 
management presence and opportunities for more services and facilities.

Informational and Public Meetings

    Informational meetings and public hearings will be scheduled in 
Alaska at the following locations: Anchorage, Fairbanks, Healy, Susitna 
Valley, and Cantwell. The specific dates and times of the meetings and 
public hearings will be announced in local media.
    It is the practice of the National Park Service to make comments, 
including names and addresses of respondents, available for public 
review. An individual respondent may request that we withhold his or 
her address from the record, which we will honor to the extent 
allowable by law. If you wish to have NPS withhold your name and/or 
address, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your 
comments. NPS 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: April 20, 2005.
Anne. D. Castellina,
Acting Regional Director, Alaska.
[FR Doc. 05-8308 Filed 4-25-05; 8:45 am]
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