|
Page Topics |
History
Plans and Web Sites for Each Park
|
Site Topics |
HOME
Table of Land Ownership in Alaska
FEDERAL PUBLIC LAND PLANNING:
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS)
__________________
STATE PUBLIC LAND PLANNING:
Alaska Dept. of
Natural Resources (DNR)
Division of
Forestry (DOF)
Division of
Mining, Land & Water (DMLW)
Division of
Parks and Outdoor Recreation (DPOR)
Alaska Dept of Fish
and Game (ADFG)
Habitat
Division
Office of the
Governor
Coastal
Management Program (CMP)
Alaska
Public Lands Information Center
Planning Alaska's
|
|
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR |
HISTORY
The Park Service Organic Act of 1916 states that the "fundamental purpose of parks is to insure the scenery and the natural and historic objects and wildlife therein and provide for the enjoyment of same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations." In 1910 the Park Service took on its first responsibility in Alaska when the President established Sitka National Monument. Mount McKinley National Park was added in 1917, and other park units followed, including Katmai National Monument, the Old Kasaan National Monument (now part of the Tongass National Forest), and the Glacier Bay National Monument. Prior to 1980 the Park Service acreage in Alaska totalled about 7.6 million acres. (http://www.nps.gov/akso)
The amount of park land in Alaska changed in 1978 when President Carter invoked the Antiquities Act of 1906 to proclaim large acreages of National Monuments in Alaska. Then in 1980 ANILCA created 10 new national parks or preserves and enlarged three existing areas. Mount McKinley National Park increased from 2.1 million acres to 5.7 million acres and became known as the Denali National Park and Preserve. Katmai National Monument increased from 2.8 million acres to 4.3 million acres and became the Katmai National Park and Preserve. Glacier Bay National Monument increased from 2.7 million acres to 3.3 million acres and became the Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. The total amount of land now managed by the Park Service in Alaska is about 51 million acres.
Park Service lands are broadly classified as park, preserve, or monument. Parks and preserves are established by Congress whereas a monument is established by Presidential proclamation. Monument designation is typically reserved for unusual or unique natural or cultural features, typically relatively small in area. National parks and preserves involve larger areas of nationally significant scientific, visual and recreational value. Sport hunting is not permitted in parks or monuments, but it is permitted in a preserve in accordance with Alaska game laws. Subsistence hunting is permitted in parks and monuments in Alaska if consistent with subsistence hunting plans. These plans, required by ANILCA, are now being prepared by subsistence resource commissions. (For further information on these plans contact the planning coordinator listed below.)
LEGAL BASIS FOR PLANNING
The Park Service is required to prepare general management plans by the National Park and Recreation Act of 1978. This act "requires preparation and timely revision of general management plans (GMP) for each unit in the system." The specific obligation to prepare plans for Park Service units in Alaska is ANILCA, which states that "within five years from the date of enactment (December 2, 1980); the secretary shall develop and transmit a conservation and management plan for each unit." All GMPs were approved as of November 1986.
PLANNING PROGRAM
The Park Service typically works from a base document called a statement for management or SFM. The statement provides a review of existing conditions and a broad statement of management direction. The SFM provides a basis for developing the GMP which addresses topics of resource management, visitor use, park operations, and development. The GMPs are intended to direct management and development for 10 to 15 years before they are redrafted or revised.
To implement the GMP the Park Service prepares the following action plans. They are prepared concurrently with or after the GMP.
Resource management plan (cultural and/or natural): Identifies actions to preserve resources, including fire, river, or historic management plans.
Development concept plan: establishes basic types and sizes of facilities for specific locations.
Interpretive plan: describes the themes and media that will be used to interpret park resources.
Wilderness suitability reviews: determines which lands are suitable for inclusion in the national wilderness system.
Other plans related to land use include the subsistence hunting plans noted above and comprehensive mineral management plans. The mineral plans are required for the three park units that contain the most mining activity: Denali National Park and Preserve, Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve, and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve. The plans provide an assessment of the cumulative impact of mining, as required for an EIS on mining in the unit.
PROCESS AND PARTICIPATION
The Park Service prepares GMPs using an eight step process:
Step 2. Identify issues and concerns (scoping)
Step 3. Collect data
Step 4. Identify alternatives
Step 5. Prepare draft plan
Step 6. Revise and consult
Step 7. Approve final plan
Step 8. Implement the plan
Public participation occurs in almost all steps but is strongest in steps 2 and 4. In step 2 the Park Service holds public meetings and informal discussions to develop a sense of issues and concerns. The public may also be involved in data collection as a source of information, but the next major opportunity is in identifying alternatives, step 4, where the agency in the past has used mass mailings and held public meetings to solicit ideas. After the agency prepares the draft plan it submits the document for 60 to 90 day public review. Public meetings are held in major cities and in the planning area.
PRODUCT
A GMP typically contains the following sections: issues, affected environment, proposal, alternatives considered, environmental consequences of the proposal and alternatives, appendices, executive summary, and related action plans if complete. The plans focus on eight key resources: wilderness, wildlife, history, archeology, paleontology, geology, recreation, and access.
CONTACTS
For general information about plans being prepared by the National Park Service contact:
National Park Service
2525 Gambell Street
Anchorage, AK 99503
phone (907) 257-2655 fax (907) 257-2510
lucy_gonyea@nps.gov
See also the Alaska National Park Planning Homepage for more information and copies of plans and compliance documents: (http://www.nps.gov/akso/planning/home.htm)
For information about a specific park plan contact the park superintendent listed below.
General Management Plans
Bering Land Bridge National Preserve (2,457,000 acres)--CMP approved 1986. Includes: land protection plan and wilderness suitability review. Contact: Dave Spirtes, Superintendent, PO Box 220, Nome, AK 99762. (907) 443-2522. (http://www.nps.gov/bela/index.htm)
Cape Krusenstern National Monument (560,000 acres)--CMP completed 1986, includes land protection plan and wilderness suitability review. Resource management plan in progress. Contact: Bob Gerhard, Superintendent, PO Box 1029, Kotzebue, AK 99752. (907) 442-3890. (http://www.nps.gov/cakr/index.htm)
Denali National Park and Preserve (5,696,000 acres)--GMP completed 1986, includes a wilderness suitability review. A development concept plan was completed in 1983. This more specific plan is being used to direct improvements to the entry road, campgrounds, and visitor center at the park entrance. Contact: Superintendent, PO Box 9, Denali Park, AK 99775. (907) 683-2294. (http://www.nps.gov/dena)
Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve (8,472,845 acres)--GMP completed 1986. Plan includes a wilderness suitability review and river management plans for the following rivers: Alatna, Noatak, John, Tinayguk, Kobuk, and North Fork of the Koyukuk. Note: some 320,000 acres within the park boundaries are privately owned. Contact: Dave Mills, Superintendent, PO Box 74680, Fairbanks, AK 99707. (907) 456-0281. (http://www.nps.gov/gaar/)
Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (3,328,000 acres)--GMP approved 1984. Includes a wilderness suitability review and development concept plan. Contact: Jim Brady, Superintendent, Bartlett Cove, Gustavus, AK 99826. (907) 697-2232. (http://www.nps.gov/glba/)
Katmai National Park and Preserve (4,268,000 acres)--GMP completed in 1986. Includes a wilderness suitability review. Alagnak Wild River Management Plan was completed as a separate document in 1983. Contact: Bill Pierce, Superintendent, PO Box 7, King Salmon, AK 99613. (907) 246-3305. (http://www.nps.gov/katm/)
Kenai Fjords National Park (567,000 acres)--GMP approved 1984. Includes land protection plan and development concept plan (for the Exit Glacier area). Contact: Anne Castellina, Superintendent, PO Box 1727, Seward, AK 99664. (907) 224-3175. (http://www.nps.gov/kefj/)
Kobuk Valley National Park (1,710,000 acres)--GMP approved 1986. Includes wilderness suitability review, Salmon Wild River Management Plan, and land protection plan. Resource Management Plan for cultural and natural resources in progress. Contact: Bob Gerhard, Superintendent, PO Box 1029, Kotzebue, AK 99752. (907) 442-3890. (http://www.nps.gov/kova/index.htm)
Lake Clark National Park and Preserve (3,653,000 acres)--GMP approved in 1984, includes a development concept plan and river management plans for three wild rivers: the Tlikalkila, Mulchatna, and Chilikadrotna. Contact: Superintendent, 222 W. 7th, Box 61, Anchorage, AK 99513-7539 (907) 271-3751. (http://www.nps.gov/lacl/)
Noatak National Preserve (6,460,000 acres)--GMP approved 1986, includes a wilderness suitability review and Noatak Wild and Scenic River Management Plan for the lower stretch of the Noatak. Resource management plan for natural and cultural resources is in progress. Contact: Superintendent, PO Box 1029, Kotzebue, AK 99672. (907) 442-3890. (http://www.nps.gov/noat/index.htm)
Wrangell-St.Elias National Park and Preserve (12,318,000 acres)--GMP approved 1986. Includes wilderness suitability review. Contact: Superintendent, PO Box 29, Glennallen, AK 99588. (907) 822-5235. (http://www.nps.gov/wrst/)
Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve (2,527,000 acres)--GMP approved 1985. Includes wilderness suitability review, land protection plan, and Charley Wild River Management Plan. Resource management plan for the preserve is in progress. Note: approximately 390,000 acres within the preserve boundary are privately owned. Contact: Superintendent, PO Box 64, Eagle, AK 99738. (907) 547-2233. (http://www.nps.gov/yuch/index.htm)
Other Park Service Units in Alaska
Sitka National Historic Park (106 acres)--The statement for management was approved in 1980 and provides much of the detail normally found in a GMP. Other plans for the park include a land acquisition plan-1980, a draft resource management plan for cultural resources-1984, and a land management plan-1985. Contact: Gary Gauthier, Superintendent, PO Box 738, Sitka, AK 99835 (907) 747-6281. (http://www.nps.gov/sitk/index.htm)
