National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument • Oregon

General Management Plan

May 2009
Claro Unit is located 18 miles southwest of the town of

Fossil. It contains 1,969 acres and includes trails and a 

picnic area. The most prominent natural feature is the towering Clarno Palisades, which are a series of sharp cliffs up

to 150 feet high formed by a series of prehistoric mud

flows.

Painted Hills Unit is located 9 miles northeast of the

town of Mitchell. It contains 3,129 acres and includes

trails, a scenic overlook, a picnic area, and information exhibits. The most prominent natural feature is a series of

multi-colored hills and ridges derived from exposed 

paleosols.

Sheet Rock Unit contains three parcels of land (8,916

acres) northeast of Dayville. This unit contains the Thomas

Condon Paleontology Center, the 200-acre James Cant

Ranch Historic District, trails, picnic areas, scenic overlooks,

and information exhibits. Prominent natural features include Picture Gorge, Sheep Rock, Goose Rock, Blue Basin,

and Cathedral Rock.
National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Oregon

General Management Plan

May 2009
View from the Clarno Unit.

“...no region in the world shows 

more complete sequences of Tertiary 

land population, both plant and 

animal than the John Day Basin.”

R..W. Chaney,

Paleobotanist
INTRODUCTION

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, located in east central Oregon in Grant and

Wheeler counties, was authorized in 1974 and established in 1975. It encompasses

14,000 acres in the John Day River valley. The monument features sedimentary rocks

that contain a plant and animal fossil record spanning 40 million years of the Age of

Mammals. 

The monument is geographically dispersed over three widely separated units: the Clarno

Unit, the Painted Hills Unit, and the Sheep Rock Unit. All three units provide a variety of

opportunities for recreation and study and serve to introduce the paleontological story

of the much larger basin to the public. 

This new management plan for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is needed

because the last comprehensive planning effort for the national monument was

completed in 1979 and much has occurred since then. Those changes include the

following: private land within the authorized boundary of the Clarno Unit was acquired;

a new visitor/paleontology center was built; visitation has increased; monument staff and

researchers have learned much more about the significance of the monument’s

resources; and National Park Service (NPS) staff are now coordinating paleontological

research, collection, and curation on all federal lands throughout the John Day Basin.

Each of these changes has major implications for the management of the monument. 

This approved general management plan will be the basic document for managing John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument for the next 15 to 20 years. The purposes of this

general management plan are as follows:

• Provide a realistic vision for the monument’s future, setting a direction for the

monument that considers the environmental as well as the financial impact of

proposed facilities and programs.

• Establish a common management direction for all monument divisions and units.

• Clearly define resource conditions and visitor uses and experiences to be achieved in

the monument.

• Provide a framework for monument managers to use when making decisions about

how to best protect monument resources, how to provide quality visitor uses and

experiences, how to manage visitor use, and what kinds of facilities, if any, to

develop in or near the monument.

The planning effort was designed to ensure that the plan was developed in consultation

with interested stakeholders and adopted by the NPS leadership after an adequate

analysis of the benefits, impacts, and economic costs of alternative courses of action.

Legislation establishing the National Park Service as an agency and governing its

management provides the fundamental direction for the administration of John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument (and other units and programs of the national park

system). This general management plan started with these laws and with the legislation

that established John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, and built on them to create a

vision for the monument’s future. This general management plan does not describe how

particular programs or projects should be prioritized or implemented. Those decisions

will be addressed in future more-detailed planning efforts. All future plans will tier from

this approved general management plan.

Summary

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument iii
The implementation of this plan will depend

on future NPS funding levels and

Servicewide priorities, and on partnership

funds, time, and effort. The approval of this

general management plan does not guarantee

that funding and staffing needed to

implement the plan will be forthcoming. Full

implementation of the plan could be many

years in the future.

THE PLAN

Under this plan, management will focus on

protecting natural and cultural resources and

increasing visitor opportunities with new

trails and limited new facilities. In an effort to

minimize human impacts within the

monument, visitors will be encouraged to use

existing designated trails. While many

unofficial human-created trails will be

eliminated, several throughout the

monument will be designated as official trails,

with accompanying improvements where

needed.

The resource management program will

maintain existing research programs and

facilities while expanding educational and

interpretive activities concerning the

environment, paleontology, and geology. The

mammal quarry in the Clarno Unit will be

opened for research and interpretation. 

Monument staff will focus on gaining a

greater understanding of the monument’s

paleontological resources through expanded

research. In an effort to expand monument

collections, staff will seek more partnerships

with other research institutions and museums

while expanding the permanent and

volunteer research staff at the monument. 

The National Park Service will pursue a land

exchange with an adjacent private landowner

and the Bureau of Land Management around

Cathedral Rock in the Sheep Rock Unit. This

land exchange, covering about 100 acres,

would protect a key geologic feature and

important riparian habitat along the John Day

River.

iv Summary

Painted Hills.
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument v

Contents

SUMMARY

Introduction iii

The Plan iii

CONTENTS v

BACKGROUND 1

Introduction 1

General Management Planning 1

Purpose of and Need For the Plan 2

Purpose of the Plan 2

Need For the Plan 2

Implementation of the Plan 3

Brief Description of the Monument 3

GUIDANCE FOR THE PLANNING EFFORT 7

Purpose and Significance 7

Purpose 7

Significance 7

Primary Significance 7

Other Significance 7

Fundamental Resources and Values 7

Fundamental Resources and Values 8

Other Important Resources and Values 8

Interpretive Themes 8

Primary Interpretive Themes 8

Secondary Interpretive Theme 8

Special Mandates and Administrative Commitments 9

Lands 9

Visitor Center 9

Access Easement 9

Hancock Field Station 9

Federal Interagency Agreements 9

American Indian Relations 9

Wilderness Eligibility 10

Servicewide Laws and Policies 10

Relationship of Other Planning Efforts to This General Managemement Plan 41

National Park Service Plans 41

Bureau of Land Management (Prineville District) Plans 42

Oregon Parks & Recreation Department Plans 43

Grant County Plans 43

Wheeler County Plans 43

Oregon Paleo Lands Institute Plans 43

Planning Issues and Concerns 44

Hancock Mammal Quarry 44

Visitor Opportunities and Visitor Facilities 44

User Capacity 44

Cant Ranch 44

River Corridor 44

Alien Species 45

Monument Operations 45

Partnerships 45

Boundaries of the Monument 45

Climate Change 45
THE PLAN 47

Introduction 47

Management Zones 48

MANAGEMENT OF SPECIFIC AREAS 53

Clarno Unit 53

Mammal Quarry 53

Geo-Loop Trail 53

Mimulus Trail 53

Stegamonster Trail 53

Indian Canyon 53

Visitor Contact Station/Office 53

Other Actions 53

Painted Hills Unit 53

Painted Hills Overlook 53

Road to Painted Cove 53

Painted Hills Picnic Area 54

Leaf Hill Trail 54

Bridge Creek Restoration 54

Sheep Rock Unit 54

Cant Ranch 54

Thomas Condon Paleontology Center 54

John Day River 54

Butler Basin 54

Research Natural Area 54

USER CAPACITY 59

Indicators and Standards 59

Monitoring 60

ESTIMATED COSTS 63

Development 63

Staff and Operations 63

OTHER ELEMENTS OF THE PLAN 65

Boundary Adjustments 65

Partnerships, Programs, and Activities 65

Future Studies and Implementation Plans Needed 65

Future Compliance Requirements 66

APPENDIXES AND PREPARERS AND CONSULTANTS 67

Appendix A: FONSI 67

Appendix B: Legislation 89

Appendix C: Analysis of Boundary Adjustment and Land Protection Criteria 93

Appendix D: State Histrical Presentation Office Consulation Letter 97

Preparers and Consultants 99

vi Table of Contents
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument vii

TABLES

Table 1: Servicewide Laws and Policies Pertaining

to John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument 13

Table 2: Management Zones 49

Table 3: Summary of User Capacity Indicators,

Standards, and Strategies for

Monitoring and Management 61

Table 4: Estimated Costs 63

Table 5: Future Compliance Required for

Implementation of Specific Actions 66

MAPS

Figure 1: Vicinity Map 5

Figure 2: Management Zones Map of

Clarno Unit 56

Figure 3: Management Zones Map of

Painted Hills Unit 57

Figure 4: Management Zones Map of

Sheep Rock Unit 58
Blue Basin, Sheep Rock Unit.
NTRODUCTION

GENERAL MANAGEMENT PLANNING

This John Day Fossil Beds National Monument General Management Plan was developed

based on the monument’s Draft General Management Plan/Environmental Assessment,

which was published in September 2008. This final plan does not include all of the

chapters and NEPA compliance text that was included in the environmental assessment.

Specifically, “Affected Environment” (chapter 3 of the draft plan), “Environmental

Consequences” (chapter 4 of the draft plan), and the alternatives that were considered in

the environmental assessment (chapter 2 of the draft plan) are not included in this final

plan. (For these details, see the Draft General Management Plan/Environmental

Assessment.)

The purpose of a general management plan is to ensure that a national park system unit

(park unit) has a clearly defined direction for resource preservation and visitor use that

will best achieve the NPS mandate to preserve resources unimpaired for the enjoyment

of future generations. In addition, general management planning makes the National

Park Service more effective, collaborative, and accountable by

• providing a balance between continuity and adaptability in decision making. This

defines the desired conditions to be achieved and maintained in a park unit and

provides a touchstone that allows NPS managers and staff to constantly adapt their

actions to changing situations while staying focused on what is most important about

the park unit.

• analyzing the park unit in relation to its surrounding ecosystem, cultural setting, and

community. This helps NPS managers and staff understand how the park unit can

interrelate with neighbors and others in ways that are ecologically, socially, and

economically sustainable. Decisions made within such a larger context are more likely

to be successful over time.

• affording everyone who has a stake in decisions affecting a park unit an opportunity

to be involved in the planning process and to influence and understand the decisions

that are made. Park units are often the focus of intense public interest. Public

involvement throughout the planning process provides focused opportunities for

NPS managers and staff to interact with the public and learn about public concerns,

expectations, and values. Public involvement also provides opportunities for NPS

managers and staff to share information about the park unit’s purpose and

significance, as well as opportunities and constraints for the management of park unit

lands.

The ultimate outcome of general management planning for park units is an agreement

among the National Park Service, its partners, and the public on why each area is

managed as part of the national park system, what resource conditions and visitor

experience should exist, and how those conditions can best be achieved and maintained

over time. 

Actions identified by general management plans or in subsequent implementation plans

may be accomplished over time. Budget restrictions, requirements for additional data or

regulatory compliance, and competing national park system priorities may preclude

implementation of many actions. Major or especially costly actions could be

implemented 10 or more years in the future.

Background

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 1
This document focuses on 1) the foundation

of general management planning (e.g.,

purpose of and need for a plan, the

monument’s purpose and significance, NPS

mandates and policies, and issues and

concerns for the plan); and 2) the plan the

National Park Service will implement at John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument

(including management zones and

management directions that will be followed

in specific parts of the monument). A list of

preparers, the finding of no significant

impacts (FONSI), the decision document

signed by the Pacific West regional director

approving the plan (appendix A), a copy of

the monument’s enabling legislation

(appendix B), the Analysis of Boundary

Adjustment and Land Protection Criteria

(appendix C), and copies of agency

consultation letters (appendix D) are

included in this final plan.

PURPOSE OF AND NEED FOR THE PLAN

Purpose of the Plan

This General Management Plan will be the

basic document for managing John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument for the next 15 to

20 years. The purposes of this management

plan are as follows:

• provide a realistic vision for the

monument’s future, setting a direction for

the monument that considers the

environmental as well as the financial

impact of proposed facilities and

programs.

• establish a common management

direction for all monument divisions and

units.

• clearly define resource conditions and

visitor uses and experiences to be

achieved in the monument.

•provide a framework for monument

managers to use when making decisions

about how to best protect monument

resources, how to provide quality visitor

uses and experiences, how to manage

visitor use, and what kinds of facilities, if

any, to develop in or near the monument.

• ensure that this foundation for decision

making has been developed in

consultation with interested stakeholders

and adopted by the NPS leadership after

an adequate analysis of the benefits,

impacts, and economic costs of alternative

courses of action.

Legislation establishing the National Park

Service as an agency and governing its

management provides the fundamental

direction for the administration of John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument (and other

units and programs of the national park

system). This General Management Plan

started with these laws, and the legislation

that established John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument, and built on them to

create a vision for the monument’s future.

The management plan does not describe how

particular programs or projects should be

prioritized or implemented. Those decisions

will be addressed in future detailed planning

efforts.

Need For the Plan

A new management plan for John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument was needed

because the last comprehensive planning

effort for the national monument was

completed in 1979 and much has occurred

since then. In 1999, 1,000 acres of private

land within the authorized boundary of the

Clarno Unit were acquired, and a new

visitor/paleontology center was recently

constructed. In addition, since 1979 visitation

has increased, monument staff and

researchers have learned much more about

the significance of the monument’s

resources, and NPS staff are now

coordinating paleontological research,

collection, and curation on all federal lands

throughout the John Day Basin. Each of these

changes has major implications for how

visitors access and use the monument and the

facilities needed to support those uses, how

resources are managed, and how the National

Park Service manages its operations.

Furthermore, most of the issues and action

items identified in the 1979 plan have been

addressed or completed, so a new plan is

needed.

2 Background
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PLAN

The implementation of this plan will depend

on future funding. The approval of this plan

does not guarantee that the funding and

staffing needed to implement the plan will be

forthcoming. Full implementation of the

actions in the approved General Management

Plan could be many years in the future.

The implementation of the approved plan

also could be affected by other factors, such

as changes in NPS staffing, visitor use

patterns, and unanticipated environmental

changes. Additional feasibility studies and

more detailed planning, environmental

documentation, and consultations will be

completed, as appropriate, before certain

actions can be carried out. For example,

• additional environmental documentation

may need to be completed

• appropriate permits may need to be

obtained before implementing actions 

• appropriate federal and state agencies will

need to be consulted concerning actions

that could affect threatened and

endangered species

• Native American tribes and the State

Historic Preservation Officer will need to

be consulted, as appropriate, on actions

that could affect cultural resources

Future program and implementation plans,

describing specific actions that managers

intend to undertake and accomplish in the

monument, will tier from the desired

conditions and long-term goals set forth in

this general management plan.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT

The monument, located in east central

Oregon in Grant and Wheeler counties, was

authorized in 1974 (PL 93-486; see appendix

B) and established in 1975. It encompasses

14,000 acres in the John Day River valley (see

figure 1: Vicinity map).

Eastern Oregon holds many unexpected

elements: pine-forested mountains, glades

that preserve tall native grasses and

wildflowers, deep canyons, trout streams,

and small coves of pinnacled badlands.

Badlands are steep, barren (non-vegetated)

lands that are dissected by many intermittent

drainage channels. Intriguing, too, are the

area’s hidden landscapes—the fossil remains

of the jungles, savannas, and woodlands that

once flourished here. The 20 square miles of

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

feature sedimentary rocks that hold a plant

and animal fossil record spanning 40 million

years of the Age of Mammals. 

Due to the rain shadow effect of the Cascade

and Ochoco Mountains to the west, the area

has a semi-arid climate. Elevations range

between 2,000 and 4,500 feet above sea level.

Average annual precipitation is approximately

14 inches, with much of that coming in the

spring as rainfall. The area receives little

snowfall at the lower elevations.

Numerous creeks in the area flow into the

John Day River, which is a major tributary of

the Columbia River and the longest

undammed river that flows into the

Columbia River today. The natural erosion

processes associated with the area’s

waterways have created features that have

exposed the monument’s vast fossil record.

The monument is geographically dispersed

over three widely separated units: the Clarno

Unit, the Painted Hills Unit, and the Sheep

Rock Unit (see figure 1: Vicinity map). All

three units provide a variety of opportunities

for recreation and study. 

The Clarno Unit is located 18 miles

southwest of the town of Fossil on State

Highway 218. It contains 1,969 acres and

includes trails and a picnic area. The most

prominent natural feature is the towering

Clarno Palisades, which are a series of sharp

cliffs up to 150 feet high formed from a series

of prehistoric volcanic mud flows. The

Hancock Field Station, owned and operated

by the Oregon Museum of Science and

Industry, is located on private land within the

Clarno Unit. 

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 3
The Painted Hills Unit is located 9 miles

northwest of the town of Mitchell. It contains

3,129 acres and includes trails, a scenic

overlook, a picnic area, and informational

exhibits. The most prominent natural feature 

is a series of multi-colored hills and ridges

derived from exposed paleosols.

The Sheep Rock Unit contains three parcels

of land (totaling 8,916 acres) situated along

State Highway 19 northwest of Dayville. This

unti contains the Thomas Condon

Paleontology Center, the 200-acrea James 

Cant Ranch Historic District, trails, picnic

areas, scenic overlooks, and information

exhibits. Prominent natural features include

Picture Gorge, Sheep Rock, Goose Rock,

Blue Basin, and Cathedral Rock. The unit is

bisected by the John Day River.

Visitation to the monument has averaged

about 110,000 visits per year, with a high of

134,710 in 1989 and a low of 74,800 in 1976.

Visitation in 2007 was just under 125,000

(NPS 2008).

Historic Barn, Sheep Rock Unit.

4 Background
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 5
Painted Cove, Painted Hills Unit.

6 Background
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 7

GUIDANCE FOR THE PLANNING EFFORT

PURPOSE AND SIGNIFICANCE

Purpose

Purpose statements are based on the

monument’s legislation and legislative history

and NPS policies. The statements reaffirm

the reasons for which the John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument was set aside as a

unit of the national park system and provide

the foundation for its management and use.

The purpose of John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument is

to preserve, and provide for the

scientific and public understanding of

the paleontological resources of the

John Day region, and the natural,

scenic, and cultural resources within

the boundaries of the national

monument.

Significance

Significance statements capture the essence

of the monument’s importance to our

country’s natural and cultural heritage.

Significance statements do not inventory

monument resources; rather, they describe

the monument’s distinctiveness and help to

place the monument within a regional,

national, and international context.

Significance statements answer questions

such as “Why are John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument’s resources distinctive?”

and “What do they contribute to our natural

or cultural heritage?” Defining the

monument’s significance helps managers

make decisions that preserve the resources

and values necessary to accomplish the

monument’s purpose.

For John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument, primary and other significance

statements were created to better articulate

the relative significance of the monument’s

resources. Elements of primary significance

are most important: they include the essential

components of why the monument was

established. Elements of other significance

contribute to and complement the primary

elements and help the National Park Service

fulfill its mission of resource preservation and

public enjoyment. Both are important and

together support the purpose of the

monument. 

The significance statements are as follows:

Primary Significance

• The John Day region contains one of the

longest and most continuous Tertiary

records of evolutionary change and biotic

relationships in the world; this

outstanding fossil record heightens our

understanding of earth history. John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument contains

a concentration of localities that are a

major part of that record. 

• The John Day region is one of the few

areas on the planet with numerous wellpreserved and ecologically diverse fossil

biotas that are entombed in sedimentary

layers and are found in close proximity

with datable volcanic rocks; these biotas

span intervals of dramatic worldwide

paleoclimatic change.

Other Significance

• John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

contains regionally representative scenic,

natural and cultural landscapes—notably,

the James Cant Ranch Historic District,

which represents the history of sheep

ranching in the region.

FUNDAMENTAL RESOURCES AND VALUES

Fundamental resources and values are

systems, processes, features, visitor

experiences, stories, scenes, etc. that warrant

special consideration during planning and

management because they are critical to

achieving the monument’s purpose and

maintaining its significance. 

Fundamental and other important resources

and values, which are linked directly to the

significance statements, are as follows.
Fundamental Resources and Values

• John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

contains important geological formations

that contain fossil-bearing sedimentary

strata, fossil soils, and numerous datable

volcanic rock layers. Special

paleontological resources include

vertebrate, botanical, and invertebrate

fossils; conformable layers of rocks

(strata); fossil localities; datable ash layers;

and identified paleosol units.

• The paleontology museum, archives,

databases, and library collections at John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument

allow scientists to conduct important

paleontological research on the history of

life on planet Earth during the past 40

million years.

Other Important Resources and Values

• The colorful and diverse landscape

presents scenic and educational features

and vistas. Examples of these scenic

resources are found in Sheep Rock,

Painted Hills, Cathedral Rock, Picture

Gorge, Blue Basin, Foree, and the Clarno

Palisades.

• The ecosystem of the monument contains

examples of protected, regionally

representative, native plant and animal

species.

• The John Day River and its tributaries are

valued resources for

their position and integrity within

the Columbia River system 

habitat for threatened and

endangered species

free flowing water important to

anadromous fish 

recreation 

water quality and quantity

fisheries 

important hydrological resources

within the near desert ecosystem 

tribal interest in traditional use 

riparian area habitat

• Archeological sites and pictographs are

valued for their association with and

representation of the cultural heritage of

American Indians and others.

• The James Cant Ranch Historic District,

listed on the National Register of Historic

Places, contains irrigated bottomlands,

corrals, buildings, and landscape

characteristics within the Sheep Rock

Unit. It is valued for its intact cultural

landscape that represents ranching

history.

INTERPRETIVE THEMES

Interpretive themes are the key stories,

concepts, and ideas of the monument. They

form the basis that NPS staff will use for

educating visitors about the monument and

for inspiring visitors to care for and about the

monument’s resources. Using these themes,

visitors can form intellectual and emotional

connections with monument resources and

experiences.

Interpretive themes are based on the

monument’s purpose and significance, and

fundamental and other important resources

and values. Primary and secondary

interpretive themes have been developed.

Primary Interpretive Themes 

• At John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument

there are great numbers of fossils

there is a great diversity of fossils

the fossils are very well preserved

the fossils represent an unusually

long time span

the fossils are datable

Thus, it is a wonderful place to study earth

history.

• The large sequence of fossil biotas and

paleosols in the John Day region shows us

that climate and life are intrinsically linked

and continually changing. 

• There are multiple, well-preserved fossil

assemblages in the John Day region that

represent over 40 million years of the

earth’s history and may be dated with

great accuracy.

Secondary Interpretive Theme

• The landscape and people of the John Day

region have been shaped by many factors;

a major influence was sheep ranching,

which was economically very important to

8 Background
the John Day region in the early 20th

century.

SPECIAL MANDATES AND 

ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITMENTS

Special mandates and administrative

commitments refer to monument-specific

requirements. These formal agreements are

often established concurrently with the

creation of a unit of the national park system.

The legislative and administrative constraints

for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

include the following.

Lands

PL 93-486, passed on October 26, 1974,

contained a provision that limited acquisition

of privately owned lands to a total of 1,000

acres. However, PL 95-625, which was passed

on November 10, 1978, amended the 1974

Act by deleting that provision. Therefore,

currently there is no limitation on the amount

of privately owned lands within the boundary

of the monument that could be acquired.

Visitor Center

PL 93-486 contained a requirement that “the

principal visitor center shall be designated as

the ‘Thomas Condon Visitor Center.’ ” The

visitor center was completed in 2004 and was

named the Thomas Condon Paleontology

Center.

Access Easement

According to the final judgment issued by

Circuit Judge J.A. Campbell in Case No. 2250,

an easement must be reserved for the

purposes of transporting cattle and

equipment across monument lands in the

Painted Hills Unit. The reservation applies to

the west half of Section 36, T10S, R20E

(except the SW quarter of the SW portion of

said Section) and along County Road No. 538

for a distance of 60 feet on each side of the

road centerline.

Hancock Field Station

The Hancock Field Station is located on a 10-

acre parcel of private land within the Clarno

Unit. The land and facilities are owned by the

Oregon Museum of Science and Industry

(OMSI) and are used for research and

educational purposes. A formal agreement

(General Agreement No. G9325070006)

between the museum and the National Park

Service was executed on May 5, 2007 and is

effective for five years beginning June 1, 2007.

The agreement authorizes certain OMSI

activities on monument lands, provides for

access to the Hancock Field Station across

monument lands, and addresses the

provision of potable water to the field station

by the National Park Service. The agreement

also includes a Permit of Right-of-Way

(RW9325-91-001A1) that allows the museum

to maintain existing water lines across

monument lands. This permit was originally

issued on June 12, 1991, and renewed ten

years later. It will expire on June 12, 2011.

Federal Interagency Agreements

The National Park Service has a 2006

interagency agreement with the Bureau of

Land Management and the U.S. Forest

Service that provides for NPS staff to

conduct inventories on lands administered by

these agencies in the John Day Basin, and to

store their fossils in the monument’s

repository.

AMERICAN INDIAN RELATIONS

The monument staff enjoys good relations

with its traditionally associated American

Indian neighbors: the Burns Paiute Tribe, the

Umatilla Confederated Tribes, and the Warm

Springs Confederated Tribes. These three

American Indian governments have legal and

cultural interests that may require special

consideration in monument management.

The Burns Paiute Tribe has an interest in the

three units of the monument because the

units are within the aboriginal territory of the

Northern Paiute people of which the tribe is

a part (Zucker, Hummel, and Hogfoss 1987).

The Treaty with the Wallawalla, Cayuse, et

cetera, 1855 established the Umatilla Indian

reservation and delineated certain ceded

lands. The monument is not located within

the ceded lands of the present-day

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 9
10 Background

Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla;

however, they do have interests in central

Oregon as these lands were where ancestors

of certain constituent groups traveled from

time to time (Mark 1996; Zucker, Hummel,

and Hogfoss 1987).

The Treaty with the Tribes of Middle Oregon,

1855 established the Warm Springs

Reservation and delineated certain ceded

lands. The three units of the monument are

located within those ceded lands of the

present-day Confederated Tribes of the

Warm Springs (Mark 1996; Zucker, Hummel,

and Hogfoss 1987). 

The two treaties mentioned above reserved

the right for American Indians on ceded

lands off of each reservation, to continue

certain subsistence activities, including “the

privilege of hunting, gathering roots and

berries, and pasturing their stock on

unclaimed lands, in common with [United

States] citizens.” The treaties also reserved,

off the reservation and outside the ceded

lands, an exclusive right for American Indians

“to take fish in the streams running through

and bordering said reservation...and at all

other usual and accustomed stations in

common with citizens of the United States,

and of erecting suitable buildings for curing

the same.” 

The National Park Service recognizes the

validity of existing treaty rights. The

monument staff is committed to consulting

with tribal governments on issues of concern

and maintaining positive relations.

WILDERNESS ELIGIBILITY

The Wilderness Act and NPS Management

Policies 2006 (§6.2.1, NPS 2006) require that

all lands administered by the National Park

Service be evaluated for their eligibility for

inclusion within the national wilderness

preservation system. 

Portions of John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument in the Sheep Rock and Painted

Hills units meet most of the criteria for

wilderness designation, but do not meet the

size criterion: standing on their own, these

areas are not big enough to provide visitors

with opportunities for solitude or primitive

and unconfined recreation. They are smaller

in size than the areas envisioned to be

designated as wilderness under the

Wilderness Act. However, these lands are

adjacent to Bureau of Land Management

(BLM) lands that were recently evaluated by

the BLM and, although unroaded, were

found not to possess wilderness character

due to previous logging activities. The

proposed management zoning of these lands

by the BLM is compatible with adjacent

management of the NPS lands. The BLM will

reevaluate the subject lands every five years

to assess their wilderness character.

Recognizing the wilderness characteristics of

the NPS lands, these lands have been

included in management zones (i.e., primitive

and backcountry zones) that will continue to

protect these areas’ existing wilderness

qualities. No actions within this plan will be

inconsistent with or jeopardize possible

future designation of the areas, in

combination with the adjacent BLM lands, as

wilderness. 

SERVICEWIDE LAWS AND POLICIES

This section identifies what must be done at

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument to

comply with federal laws and policies of the

National Park Service. Many monument

management directives are specified in laws

and policies guiding the National Park

Service and therefore are not subject to

alternative approaches. For example, there

are laws and policies about managing

environmental quality, such as the Clean Air

Act, the Endangered Species Act, and

Executive Order 11990, “Protection of

Wetlands”; laws governing the preservation

of cultural resources and cultural values, such

as the National Historic Preservation Act and

the Native American Graves Protection and

Repatriation Act; and laws about providing

public services, such as the Americans with

Disabilities Act—to name only a few. In other

words, a general management plan is not
needed to decide, for instance, that it is

appropriate to protect endangered species,

control nonnative species, protect

archeological sites, conserve artifacts, or

provide for universal access—laws and

policies already require the National Park

Service to fulfill these mandates. The

National Park Service will continue to strive

to implement these requirements with or

without a new general management plan.

Some laws and executive orders are

applicable solely or primarily to units of the

national park system. These include the 1916

Organic Act that created the National Park

Service; the General Authorities Act of 1970;

the National Parks and Recreation Act of

1978, relating to the management of the

national park system; and the National Parks

Omnibus Management Act (1998). Other

laws and executive orders, such as those

addressing environmental quality, have much

broader application.

The NPS Organic Act (16 USC § 1) provides

the fundamental management direction for

all units of the national park system:

[P]romote and regulate the use of the Federal

areas known as national parks, monuments,

and reservations...by such means and

measure as conform to the fundamental

purpose of said parks, monuments and

reservations, which purpose is to conserve

the scenery and the natural and historic

objects and the wild life therein and to

provide for the enjoyment of the same in

such manner and by such means as will leave

them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future

generations.

The National Park System General

Authorities Act (16 USC § 1a-1 et seq.)

affirms that while all national park system

units remain “distinct in character,” they are

“united through their interrelated purposes

and resources into one national park system

as cumulative expressions of a single national

heritage.” The act makes it clear that the NPS

Organic Act and other protective mandates

apply equally to all units of the system.

Further, amendments state that NPS

management of park units should not

“derogat[e]...the purposes and values for

which these various areas have been

established.”

The National Park Service also has

established policies for all units under its

stewardship. These are identified and

explained in a guidance manual entitled NPS

Management Policies 2006. The alternatives

considered in this document incorporate and

comply with the provisions of these mandates

and policies.

Table 1 shows some of the most pertinent

servicewide laws and policy topics related to

planning and managing John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument. For each topic there are

a series of desired conditions that the NPS

staff is striving to achieve for that topic. Thus

the table is written in the present tense. In

addition, the table cites the law or policy

behind these desired conditions, and gives

examples of the types of actions being

pursued by NPS staff. 

Painted Hills Unit.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 11
12 Background

Blue Basin, Sheep Rock Unit.
The NPS Management Policies 2006 (§1.6) stresses the need for cooperative

conservation beyond park boundaries. This is necessary in order for the

National Park Service to fulfill its mandate to preserve the natural and cultural

resources unimpaired for future generations. Local and regional cooperation

may involve other federal agencies, tribal, state, and local governments,

neighboring landowners, and nongovernmental and private sector

organizations.

The Bureau of Land Management administers public lands that are adjacent to

all three units of the monument. Private landowners also have lands adjacent

to the units.

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is managed as

part of a greater ecological, social, economic, and cultural system.

Good relations are maintained with adjacent landowners, such as the Bureau

of Land Management, surrounding communities, and private and public

groups that affect, and are affected by, the monument. The monument is

managed proactively to resolve external issues and concerns and ensure that

monument values are not compromised.

Because the monument is an integral part of a larger regional environment, the

National Park Service works cooperatively with others to anticipate, avoid, and

resolve potential conflicts, protect national monument resources, and address

mutual interests in the quality of life for community residents. Regional

cooperation involves federal, state, and local agencies, American Indian tribes,

neighboring landowners, and all other concerned parties.

Strategies: NPS staff would continue to establish and foster partnerships with

public and private organizations to achieve the purposes and missions of John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument. Partnerships would continue to be sought

for resource protection, research, education, and visitor enjoyment purposes.

To foster a spirit of cooperation with neighbors and encourage compatible

adjacent land uses, NPS staff would continue to keep landowners, land

managers, local governments, and the public informed about management

activities. Periodic consultations would continue with landowners who might

be affected by visitors and management actions. NPS staff would continue to

respond promptly to conflicts that arise over NPS activities, visitor access, and

proposed activities and developments on adjacent lands that could affect John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument. NPS staff may provide technical and

management assistance to landowners to address issues of mutual interest.

NPS staff would continue to work closely with adjacent landowners, local,

state, and federal agencies, and tribal governments whose programs affect, or

are affected by, activities in John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. NPS

Relations with

Private and 

Public

Organizations,

Owners of

Adjacent Land, and

Government Agencies

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 13

Table 1: Servicewide Laws and Policies Pertaining to John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument
managers would continue to pursue cooperative regional planning whenever

possible to integrate the monument into issues of regional concern.

The Presidential Memorandum of April 29, 1994, Executive Order 13175, and

Executive Order 13007 (Indian Sacred Sites), a variety of federal statutes (e.g.,

National Historic Preservation Act), and NPS Management Policies 2006

(§1.11.1) call for the National Park Service to maintain a government-togovernment relationship with federally recognized tribal governments.

The Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation are affiliated with

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument as are the Burns Paiute Tribe and the

Umatilla Confederated Tribes.

Desired Conditions: The National Park Service and tribes culturally affiliated

with the monument maintain positive, productive, government-to-government

relationships. Monument managers and staff respect the viewpoints and needs

of the tribes, continue to promptly address conflicts that occur, and consider

American Indian values in monument management and operation.

Strategies: NPS staff would continue to meet and communicate with tribal

officials to identify problems and issues of mutual concern and interest, and

work together to take actions to address these concerns.

Tribal officials would continue to be kept informed of planning and other

actions in John Day Fossil Beds National Monument that could affect the tribes.

When appropriate, NPS staff would provide technical assistance to the tribes,

including sharing information and resources, to address problems and issues of

mutual concern.

NPS staff would continue to recognize the past and present existence of native

peoples in the region and the traces of their land use and occupation as an

important part of the cultural environment to be researched, preserved, and

interpreted, if appropriate. 

NPS staff would consult with the tribes traditionally associated with the

monument, including the Burns Paiute Tribe, the Umatilla Confederated Tribes,

and the Warm Springs Confederated Tribes, to develop and accomplish the

programs of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in a way that respects

the beliefs, traditions, and other cultural values of the tribes with ties to

monument lands.

NPS staff would accommodate access to traditionally used areas, once

identified through further consultation and research, in ways consistent with

monument purposes and American Indian values, and that avoid adversely

affecting the physical integrity of such sites and resources.

NPS staff would conduct appropriate ethnographic, ethnohistorical, or cultural

anthropological research in conjunction with, and in cooperation with,

American Indian tribes traditionally associated with the monument and

cooperate as appropriate in light of law and policy with any continuation of

subsistence activities.

Government-toGovernment Relations

with American Indian

Tribes

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

14 Background
As noted earlier, the NPS Management Policies 2006 (§1.6) stresses the need

for cooperative conservation beyond park boundaries. The cooperation

includes working with nearby communities.

Desired Conditions: NPS staff maintain close working relationships with

nearby communities. NPS staff and local officials maintain a high level of trust

and goodwill. Local officials feel they have an important stake in the

monument, and NPS staff feel they have an important stake in the local

communities. NPS managers are familiar with local issues and concerns. 

Strategies: NPS staff would communicate and meet with local officials to

identify problems and concerns facing the communities and the monument,

and actions that can be taken to address these problems and concerns. 

Local officials would be kept informed of planning and other actions in the

monument that could affect the communities. NPS staff would continue to

work with local law enforcement, emergency services, and community education programs, as appropriate.

When appropriate, the NPS staff would provide technical and management

assistance to local communities, including sharing information and resources,

to address problems and issues of mutual interest; such as the spread of

nonnative, invasive species. NPS staff would continue to be involved in

community-based efforts.

The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) has operated the Hancock

Field Station for over 50 years—from a time well before the establishment of

the monument. It is on 10 acres of land within the Clarno Unit. The field

station consists of 30 structures, including cabins, restrooms, a dining hall, and

laboratories/ classrooms. The field station is open to students for nine months

of the year. On average, 3,000 students annually attend sessions, taking classes

on a variety of subjects, such as paleontology, geology, botany, archeology, and

astronomy. 

Desired Conditions: The National Park Service continues to maintain its

partnership with the Hancock Field Station, working together to achieve the

field station's education mission while also preserving and protecting the

monument's resources and values. The field station plays an important role in

achieving conservation goals in the monument, and provides valuable

assistance to monument staff through educational programs, resource

restoration, and scientific research. Field station staff and participants connect

with the monument, appreciate and respect its resources, and commit

themselves to long-term stewardship. 

Strategies: NPS staff would continue to periodically meet with field station

staff to address opportunities and issues of mutual interest (e.g., trail access in

the Clarno Unit).

The National Park Service would continue to provide water to the field station.

The field station would make significant efforts to minimize its water use

Relations with Nearby

Communities (e.g.,

Fossil, John Day,

Dayville, Mitchell)

Relations with the

Hancock Field Station

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 15
Natural Resources

Relations with the

Hancock Field Station

(continued)

Paleontological

Resources

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

16 Background

through low-flush toilets, low-flow showerheads, and xeriscaping.

The field station would work with NPS staff to restore areas that have been

disturbed in the past by people.

The field station and NPS staff would continue to share information regarding

research and inventory work. Field station participants work with researchers in

the monument, as appropriate.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is world renowned for its fossil

resources. This remarkably complete record spans more than 40 of the 65 million

years of the Cenozoic Era (the "Age of Mammals and Flowering Plants").

Research has been active in the monument since the 1860s, and continues

today.

The National Park Service Organic Act (16 USC 1-4) and 36 Code of Federal

Regulations §2.1 generally apply to the protection of all resources in park units.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§4.8.2) and the NPS "Reference Manual 77:

Natural Resource Management" provide direction for the protection and

management of paleontological resources in park units. The National Park

Service also has a 2006 interagency agreement with the Bureau of Land

Management and U.S. Forest Service to conduct inventories on lands they

manage in the John Day Basin and store those fossils in the NPS collections. 

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's paleontological

resources, including both organic and mineralized remains in body or trace form,

are protected, preserved in situ, when appropriate, or are collected and stored

by taxonomic group in museums. Opportunities continue to be provided for

public education, interpretation, and scientific research. Federal and other

landowners in the John Day Basin also are encouraged to protect and preserve

fossils. Protection may include construction of shelters over specimens,

stabilization in the field, or collection, preparation, and placement of specimens

in museum collection. The monument is systematically monitored for newly

exposed fossils. Fossil localities and associated geologic data are adequately

documented when specimens are collected. Impacts to paleontological resources

from human activities, including construction of facilities and illegal collecting,

are minimized. 

Strategies: A paleontological research plan that directs future research efforts

has been developed and is updated as needed.

Paleontological resources in the monument would continue to be inventoried

and assessed to determine their extent and scientific significance, and to ensure

that these nonrenewable resources are not lost. Fossils collected would be

managed in accordance with the monument's collection management plan.

Cyclic prospecting would be relied on, whereby areas of high erosion that also

have high potential for significant specimens, are periodically examined for new

sites. The periodicity of cyclic prospecting would depend on the abundance of
fossils and the rate of erosion. Fossil localities and associated geologic data

would be documented when specimens are collected. Paleontological resource

stability indicators, covering such elements as rates of erosion and human

activity, would be developed and monitored to establish vital signs and assess

the conditions for fossil resources. Because these elements vary widely

depending on the nature of the strata, specific stability measures need to be

developed for each locality and stratigraphic occurrence.

A variety of methods would be followed to protect resources, such as data

recording, stabilization in the field, collection, preparation, and placement of

specimens in a museum collection, or construction of shelters over specimens. 

Paleontological resources would be managed and studied in their geologic

context, which provides information about the ancient environment.

NPS staff would be a partner with other federal, tribal, state, and local

agencies, and academic institutions to conduct paleontological research both in

the monument and in the greater John Day River Basin. Researchers with the

academic community would continue to be encouraged to conduct

paleontological research in the John Day Basin. NPS staff would continue to

coordinate scientific research and fossil identification, preparation, and curation

on all federal lands in the John Day River Basin. The NPS staff would continue

to expand opportunities for researchers to use the monument's fossil collection

to further paleontological knowledge.

All areas with potential paleontological resources in the monument would be

surveyed prior to construction of new facilities. If destructive and preventable

erosion occurs or ground disturbing activities, such as construction of new

trails, are proposed in areas with potential paleontological resources, a

qualified paleontologist would survey the areas for paleontological resources,

evaluate their significance, and specify whether data recording, stabilization, or

specimen collection is necessary. New facilities would be avoided on areas that

may yield fossils, or if necessary, the resource may be collected prior to the

initiation of construction. 

All areas that are not zoned for public use would continue to be closed to

public use and entry. However, some guided public hikes may be permitted in

closed areas.

Management actions would be taken to prevent illegal collecting and may be

taken to prevent damage from natural processes such as erosion. If important

sites or areas are discovered they would be patrolled to prevent theft and

vandalism. Paleontological resources along high use trails would be monitored

and actions taken to reduce impacts.

The NPS staff would exchange casts of fossils only with other qualified

museums and public institutions dedicated to the preservation and

interpretation of natural heritage.

Interpretive and educational programs would continue to be developed to

educate the public about paleontology. Fossils would be prepared, exhibited,

Paleontological

Resources

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 17
and stored according to NPS museum standards. Fossils from the greater John

Day River Basin would continue to be stored at the Thomas Condon

Paleontology Center.

NPS staff would work with the Hancock Field Station staff, teachers and

students to conduct programs on paleontological resources and ensure that

their activities are consistent with NPS management policies and standards and

the field station's general agreement with the National Park Service. Hancock

staff may also assist the NPS staff in monitoring the area for potential impacts.

Combining a resource protection and stewardship message with resource

monitoring would help limit potential adverse impacts to paleontological

resources.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§1.6, 4.1, 4.1.4, 4.4.1) provides general

direction for managing park units from an ecosystem perspective. 

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is managed

holistically, as part of a greater ecological, social, economic, and cultural

system. The National Park Service demonstrates leadership in resource

stewardship and conservation of ecosystem values within and outside the

monument. John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is managed from an

ecosystem perspective, where internal and external factors affecting visitor use,

environmental quality, and resource stewardship goals are considered at a scale

appropriate to their impact on affected resources. Natural processes, ecosystem

dynamics, and population fluctuations occur with as little human intervention

as possible. Monument resources and visitors are managed considering the

ecological and social conditions of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

and the surrounding area. NPS managers adapt to changing ecological and

social conditions within and outside the monument and continue as partners in

regional planning and land and water management. The monument is

managed proactively to resolve external issues and concerns to ensure that

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's values are not compromised.

Strategies: NPS staff would continue to participate in and encourage ongoing

partnerships with local, state, and federal agencies; educational institutions;

and other organizations in programs that have importance within and beyond

the monument's boundaries. Cooperative agreements, partnerships, and other

arrangements can be used to set an example in resource conservation and

innovation, and to facilitate research related to recreation area resources and

their management. Partnerships important to the long-term viability of natural

and cultural resources include, but are not limited to, the following:

• inventorying, monitoring, and managing terrestrial resources with the

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon Natural Heritage

Program, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,

Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, Bonneville Power

Administration, Warm Springs Indian Tribes, and the Hancock Field Station 

• monitoring, enforcing regulations, and managing aquatic resources with

the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S.

Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Marine Fisheries Service

• monitoring and managing federally threatened and endangered species

with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service,

Paleontological

Resources

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

18 Background

Ecosystem

Management
Bureau of Land Management, Oregon Department of Fish and Game, and

Oregon Natural Heritage Program 

• supporting scientific research and ecological monitoring to guide recovery

and conservation efforts in collaboration with professionals from federal,

tribal, and state agencies, academic institutions, museums, and research

organizations

• approaching all resource management questions from an ecosystem

standpoint, taking into account all biological interrelationships

• continuing long-term monitoring of the change in condition of natural

resources and related human influences; monitoring of high priority vital

signs that capture the condition and trend of ecosystem health

• identifying management considerations for areas external to the

monument where ecological processes, natural and cultural resources,

and/or human use affect monument resources or are closely related to

monument resource management; joint management actions,

agreements, or partnerships to promote resource conservation would be

initiated (see natural resources strategies)

As called for in the monument's wildland fire management plan (NPS 2004b),

NPS staff would continue to use prescribed fire as appropriate to reduce

hazardous fuel conditions, supplement the ecological role of fire as a natural

processes in fire-dependent vegetative communities, eliminate or reduce

nonnative species, protect or restore key plant or animal habitats or

communities, promote ethnographic resources and maintain cultural and

historic scenes in the monument.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's natural resources are a key element

in the use and management of the monument. Protection, study, and

management of natural resources and processes are essential for achieving

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's purposes and mission. NPS

Management Policies 2006 (§4) and Reference Manual #77, "Natural Resource

Management" provide general direction on natural resource management for

the monument.

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument retains its

ecological integrity, including its natural resources and processes. Natural

processes, ecosystem dynamics, and population fluctuations occur with as little

human intervention as possible. The monument continues to be a dynamic,

bio-diverse environment. The natural features of the monument remain

unimpaired. All native plants and animals are maintained as part of the

monument's natural ecosystems. ("Native species" are defined as all species

that have occurred or now occur as a result of natural processes on lands

designated as units of the national park system.) Native soils and the processes

of soil genesis are preserved in a condition that maintains historic soil

associations. Soils are maintained in a condition to sustain plant and animal

productivity, maintain or enhance water and air quality, support human health

and habitation, and protect and preserve cultural resources and landscapes.

Soils consistent with maintenance of associated historic practices are

conserved. Sources of air, water, and noise pollution affecting John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument's resources are limited to the greatest degree

possible. Potential threats to the monument's resources are identified early and

Ecosystem

Management

(continued)

Natural Resources –

General

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 19
proactively addressed. Visitors and staff recognize and understand the value of

the monument's natural resources. NPS staff uses the best available scientific

information and technology to manage the monument's natural resources.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is recognized and valued as an

outstanding example of resource stewardship, conservation, education, and

public use.

Strategies: Science-based, adaptive, decision making would continue to be

followed, with the results of resource monitoring and research incorporated

into all aspects of monument operations. NPS staff would continue to apply

ecological principles to ensure that natural resources are maintained and not

impaired.

NPS staff and other scientists would continue to inventory monument

resources to quantify, locate, and document biotic and abiotic resources in the

monument and to assess their status and trends. Inventories and monitoring of

the monument's plants and animals would continue. Collected data would be

used as a baseline against which to regularly monitor the distribution and

condition of selected species, including indicators of ecosystem condition and

diversity, rare or protected species, and invasive exotics. Management plans

would be modified to be more effective, based on the results of monitoring.

NPS staff would work with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to

inventory, monitor, enforce regulations, and manage terrestrial and aquatic

wildlife and habitat. NPS staff would periodically review state fishing

regulations that apply to the monument and make recommendations to the

state to revise them as needed to support native fish populations.

Fish and wildlife habitat would be protected through timing of monument

activities and through consultations with the Oregon Department of Fish and

Wildlife, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service, and

Native American tribes.

NPS staff and other scientists would conduct long-term, systematic monitoring

of resources and processes to discern natural and anthropogenically induced

trends, document changes in species or communities, evaluate the

effectiveness of management actions taken to protect and restore resources,

and mitigate impacts on resources.

NPS staff would expand monitoring programs to include geographic areas and

resources that are not currently monitored. Partnerships with institutions,

agencies, and scientists would be an important component of this endeavor. 

Future facilities would be built in previously disturbed areas with as small of a

construction footprint as possible. NPS staff would also apply mitigation

techniques to minimize the impacts of construction and other activities on

monument resources.

Actions that have the potential to result in significant soil disturbance would

include appropriate mitigation to control erosion and allow revegetation of

disturbed areas.

Natural Resources –

General

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

20 Background
Integrated pest management procedures would continue to be used when

necessary to control nonnative organisms or other pests.

Scientific research would be encouraged. Cooperative basic and applied

research would be encouraged through various partnerships and agreements

to increase the understanding of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's

resources, natural processes, and human interactions with the environment, or

to answer specific management questions. 

NPS staff would continue to expand the data management system, including a

geographic information system (GIS) and a research and literature database for

analyzing, modeling, predicting, and testing trends in resource conditions.

NPS managers would prepare and periodically update a "Resource Stewardship

Strategy" that includes a comprehensive list of prioritized actions to achieve

the desired resource conditions identified in the general management plan.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§4.4) calls for the National Park Service to

maintain natural ecosystems in park units and to restore native plant and

animal populations. "Reference Manual 77: Natural Resource Management"

also provides general direction on the restoration of natural resources for the

monument.

Many of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's natural ecosystems have

been altered by the activities of people and the introduction of nonnative

species. (Nonnative species—also referred to as exotic, alien, or invasive

species—are those species that occupy or could occupy monument lands

directly or indirectly as the result of deliberate or accidental human activities.)

More specifically, the condition of natural vegetation communities has declined

in the monument due to the expansion of annual grasses and the spread of

nonnative plant species. Fires have also been suppressed, which has lead to the

expansion of western juniper. In recent years efforts have begun to restore

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's brush and grass ecosystems with

the application of prescribed burns.

Desired Conditions: With the exception of culturally significant areas, John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument's bunchgrass/sagebrush steppe

environment is restored as nearly as possible to the conditions it would be in

today had natural ecological processes not been altered. Native species

populations that have been severely reduced in or extirpated from the

monument are restored where feasible and sustainable. Populations of native

plant and animal species function in as natural condition as possible except

where special considerations are warranted. Vegetation is in a condition

reminiscent of the period before Europeans began altering the monument. All

federally and state threatened and endangered species are no longer in danger

of extinction and are at least stable. The natural fire regime has been restored. 

The presence of nonnative species in the monument is minimized to the

degree possible. The NPS staff provides for their control to minimize the

economic, ecological, and human health impacts that these species cause.

Natural Resources –

General

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 21

Natural Resources –

Restoration of

Natural Environment

and Management of

Nonnative Species
Strategies: Active restoration efforts would continue throughout the

monument, primarily focusing on management of nonnative (weed) species,

western juniper control, revegetation of native plants, prescribed fire, and

restoration of native plants and animals. The management of populations of

nonnative plant and animal species, up to and including eradication, would be

undertaken wherever such species threaten monument resources or public

health, and when control is prudent and feasible.

Western juniper would continue to be controlled in areas where the tree has

become invasive. 

Inventories and monitoring of invasive nonnative plant species would continue.

High priority is given to managing exotic species that have or potentially could

have a substantial impact on monument resources, and that can reasonably be

expected to be successfully controllable. Efforts would continue to control or

eradicate nonnative plants that are particularly invasive and destructive pests,

or have the potential to rapidly spread and dominate plant communities, such

as Russian knapweed and whitetop. Lower priority would be given to

nonnative species that have almost no impact on monument resources or that

probably cannot be successfully controlled. 

Restoration of previously or newly disturbed areas would be done using native

genetic materials (when available) from the local region to regain maximum

habitat value. Should facilities be removed, the disturbed lands would be

restored to natural topography and soils, and the areas would be revegetated

with native species. Only plants that are not invasive and would remain within

developed areas would be used. 

Historically, fire periodically occurred in the monument. However, in more

recent times, regional fires have been suppressed, resulting in a build up of

fuel. The current fire management plan (NPS 2004b) discusses and deals with

these issues and would continue to be followed. Monument fire management

programs would be designed to meet resource management objectives

prescribed for the various areas of the monument and to ensure that the safety

of firefighters and the public are not compromised.

All wildland fires would be effectively managed, considering resource values to

be protected and firefighter and public safety, using the full range of strategic

and tactical operations as described in the approved fire management plan.

NPS staff would participate in regional ecosystem efforts to restore native

species.

Research would be supported that contributes to management knowledge of

native species.

Interpretive and educational programs would continue to be provided on the

preservation of native species for visitors and for residents neighboring the

monument.

Natural Resources –

Restoration of Natural

Environment and

Management of

Nonnative Species

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

22 Background
Under the Endangered Species Act, the National Park Service is mandated to

promote the conservation of all federal threatened and endangered species

and their critical habitats within park unit boundaries. NPS Management

Policies 2006 (§ 4.4.2.3) also call for the agency to survey for, protect, and

strive to recover all species native to park units that are listed under the

Endangered Species Act. In addition, the National Park Service is directed to

inventory, monitor, and manage state-listed species in a manner similar to the

treatment of federally listed species, to the greatest extent possible. 

A few threatened and endangered species have been recorded at John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument. Bull trout, mid-Columbia steelhead, and the

state-listed peregrine falcon are the only listed species known to regularly occur

in or use the monument. However, there is the possibility that threatened and

endangered species, occur in the monument but have not yet been

documented as being present.

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument contributes to

the overall recovery and eventual delisting of all listed species and species

proposed for listing. Essential habitats that support these species are all

protected. Federally listed and state-listed threatened and endangered species

and their habitats are protected and sustained.

Native threatened and endangered species populations that have been severely

reduced in or extirpated from the monument are restored where feasible and

sustainable.

Strategies: NPS staff, cooperators and contractors would continue to survey

and monitor for presence of federally and state threatened and endangered

species in the monument, including bald eagle, bull trout, mid-Columbia

steelhead, and the state-listed peregrine falcon. NPS staff would cooperate

with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service and

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in inventorying, monitoring,

protecting, and perpetuating the natural distribution and abundance of all

state and federally listed species and their essential habitats. These species and

their required habitats would be specifically considered in ongoing planning

and management activities. If appropriate, surveys for threatened and

endangered species would be undertaken prior to permitting grounddisturbing activities or developments.

If any state or federally listed, or proposed threatened or endangered species,

were found in areas that would be affected by construction, visitor use, or

restoration activities proposed in any of the alternatives in this plan, the NPS

staff would first consult informally with the above agencies. The NPS staff

would then take action to address any potential adverse impacts on state or

federally listed species. Should it be determined through informal consultation

that an action might adversely affect a species that is federally listed or

proposed for listing, NPS staff would initiate formal consultation under section

7 of the Endangered Species Act.

Federally Listed and

State-listed Threatened

and Endangered

Species

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 23
The Clean Air Act (42 USC 7401 et seq.) gives federal land managers the

responsibility for protecting air quality and related values, including visibility,

plants, animals, soils, water quality, cultural resources, and public health, from

adverse air pollution impacts. NPS Management Policies 2006 (§4.7), and

"Reference Manual 77: Natural Resource Management" provide further

direction on the protection of air quality and related values for park units.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is classified as a Class II area under

the Clean Air Act (42 USC 7401 et seq.). This air quality classification is the

second most stringent and is designed to protect the majority of the country

from air quality degradation. The Clean Air Act gives federal land managers

the responsibility for protecting air quality and related values, including

visibility, plants, animals, soils, water quality, cultural resources, and public

health, from adverse air pollution impacts. The only known source of air

degradation is occasional smoke from fires, mostly outside the monument.

Desired Conditions: Good to excellent air quality is maintained. Air quality in

the monument meets national ambient air quality standards for specified

pollutants. The monument's air quality is maintained or enhanced with no

significant deterioration. Nearly unimpaired views of the landscape both within

and outside the monument are present. Scenic views, both day and night, are

protected and unimpaired for the enjoyment of current and future visitors. 

Strategies: NPS staff would continue to work with appropriate federal and

state government agencies and nearby communities to maintain and improve

the monument's regional air quality. NPS staff would participate in regional air

quality planning, research, and the implementation of air quality standards. 

Air quality in the monument would be periodically monitored to gain baseline

information and to measure any significant changes (improvement or

deterioration) to John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's airshed.

To minimize smoke impacts, controlled burns would occur only when favorable

meteorological conditions are present. The vegetation to be burned would be

in a condition that would facilitate combustion and minimize the amount of

smoke emitted during combustion.

Water is a key resource in John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, shaping

the landscape and affecting plants, animals, and visitor use. The Clean Water

Act strives to restore and maintain the integrity of U.S. waters, which includes

waters found in the recreation area. NPS Management Policies 2006 (§4.6.3)

and "Reference Manual 77: Natural Resource Management" provide direction

on the protection and management of surface and groundwater in the

monument. 

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Bed National Monument's water quality

reflects natural conditions and supports native plant and animal communities,

and administrative and recreational uses. All water in the monument meets

applicable state standards. All human sources of water pollution, both within

and outside the monument, that are adversely affecting John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument are eliminated, mitigated, or minimized.

Air Quality

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

24 Background

Water Quality
Strategies: Surface water quality would be monitored on a regular basis in the

monument, focusing on bacterial and other organic contamination. Chemical

contaminants, such as pesticides, would be periodically monitored. 

NPS staff would work with adjacent landowners and the Oregon Department

of Environmental Quality to identify pollution sources outside the monument's

boundaries that are affecting John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, such

as ranch and farmlands along the John Day River.

NPS staff would continue to pursue a minor boundary adjustment to protect a

spring located on BLM land that serves as the primary source of water for the

Thomas Condon Paleontology Center.

A water resource stewardship report would be prepared to identify

comprehensive strategies to address water issues facing the monument. 

A hazardous substance and spill contingency plan would be prepared to

address contamination from hazardous materials (e.g., petroleum products,

raw sewage, and agricultural chemicals).

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§4.6.1, 4.6.2) calls for the National Park

Service to perpetuate surface and groundwater as integral components of

aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in park units. "Reference Manual 77: Natural

Resource Management" provides further direction on the management of

water quantity in park units, stating the National Park Service would manage

and use water to protect resources, accommodate visitors, and administer park

units within legal mandates. 

John Day River, Rock Creek, and Bridge Creek are important for recreation, fish

and wildlife habitat, and irrigation of fields in the monument. The National

Park Service owns water rights on the John Day River and its tributaries, which

it uses to provide water for monument operations and to irrigate agricultural

fields. 

Desired Conditions: All documented springs and streams continue to flow

and the flows are natural to the extent possible. The monument exhibits water

quantity characteristics consistent with those that first attracted people to the

area. The groundwater and quantity of water that underlies and shapes all of

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's natural and cultural features is

maintained and protected.

Strategies: NPS staff would monitor flows of the John Day River and its

tributaries within the monument. 

NPS staff would continue to educate the public about the importance of instream flows and groundwater for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.

A water resource stewardship report and watershed condition assessment

would be prepared to identify comprehensive strategies to address water issues

facing the monument. 

Water Quality

(continued)

Water Quantity

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 25
NPS staff would continue to pursue a minor boundary adjustment to protect a

spring located on BLM land that serves as the primary source of water for the

Thomas Condon Paleontology Center.

To protect water resources within John Day Fossil Beds National Monument,

NPS staff would work with state and federal agencies, landowners,

conservation districts, and other entities to monitor water use within and

adjacent to the monument. NPS staff would continue to monitor water rights

applications, attend hearings, and protest applications if necessary.

NPS staff would continue to work with appropriate federal and state agencies,

including the Bureau of Land Management, to develop a comprehensive,

unified approach to managing the John Day River. The National Park Service

would work within the state administrative process to provide protection to

surface and groundwater resources in the monument.

NPS staff would encourage neighbors of the monument to emphasize

conservation of water in their operations (e.g., using low flow conservation

technology and more efficient ways to irrigate fields).

NPS staff would strive to conserve water in all monument operations. Examples

of actions that could be taken include installing low-flow fixtures such as

toilets and showers, or installing self-contained, evaporative toilets.

Floodplains exist along the John Day River, and Bridge and Rock creeks. Floods

can occur due to thunderstorms, posing a risk to structures, visitors, and

employees. Floodplains are protected and managed in accordance with

Executive Order 11988 ("Floodplain Management"), NPS Director's Order 77-2

and its accompanying procedural manual, and NPS Management Policies 2006

(§4.6.4). 

Desired Conditions: Natural floodplain values are preserved or restored. Longand short-term impacts associated with the occupancy and modification of

floodplains are avoided. Hazardous conditions associated with flooding that

could affect visitor safety are minimized. 

Strategies: Whenever possible, new structures would be located on sites

outside floodplains. If it is not possible to avoid locating a new structure on a

floodplain or to avoid a management action that would affect a floodplain, the

National Park Service would

• prepare and approve a statement of findings in accordance with Director's

Order 77-2

• use nonstructural measures as much as practicable to reduce hazards to

human life and property while minimizing impacts on the natural resources

of the floodplains

• ensure that structures and facilities are designed to be consistent with the

intent of the standards and criteria of the National Flood Insurance

Program (44 CFR 60)

Water Quantity

(continued)

Floodplains

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

26 Background
Mitigation measures would be required as part of construction to avoid any

potential indirect effects on floodplains. Before initiating any ground-disturbing

projects, further investigation would be conducted to determine if floodplain

resources would be affected. Floodplains would be addressed at the project

level to ensure that projects are consistent with NPS policy and Executive Order

11988.

Visitor interpretive and education efforts would emphasize the hazards that

exist when flash flooding occurs in the monument, and appropriate responses.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument does not have extensive wetlands.

Although there is not a detailed wetlands inventory for the monument, small

wetlands are located in the vicinity of seeps and springs, and along the John

Day River and its tributaries. Wetlands are protected and managed in

accordance with Executive Order 11990,"Protection of Wetlands"; NPS

Director's Order 77-1, and its accompanying procedural manual; and NPS

Management Policies 2006 (§4.6.5).

Desired Conditions: The natural values of wetlands are maintained and

protected. When practicable, natural wetland values are enhanced by using

them for educational, recreational, scientific, and similar purposes that do not

disrupt natural wetland functions. 

Strategies: A monument-wide wetland inventory, condition assessment, and

functional evaluation would be done to help ensure proper management and

protection of wetland resources. More detailed wetland mapping would be

performed in areas that are proposed for development or are otherwise

susceptible to degradation or loss due to human activities.

NPS staff would be trained in wetlands identification to ensure that operational

activities do not inadvertently drain or alter wetlands, including ephemeral

(seasonal) wetlands.

The construction of new developments in wetlands would be avoided. If it is

not possible to avoid locating a new development in a wetland or to avoid a

management action that would adversely affect a wetland, the National Park

Service would comply with the provisions of Executive Order 11990, the Clean

Water Act, and Director's Order 77-1. All practicable measures (including the

best management practices described in appendix 2 of the NPS Procedural

Manual #77-1, "Wetland Protection") would be included in the preferred

alternative to minimize harm to wetlands. The loss of any wetlands would be

compensated.

A statement of findings for wetlands would be prepared according to the

guidelines defined in the NPS Procedural Manual #77-1 if the action would

result in an adverse impact on a wetland. The statement of findings would

include an analysis of the alternatives, delineation of the wetland, a wetland

restoration plan to identify mitigation, and a wetland functional analysis of the

impact site and restoration site.

Floodplains

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 27

Wetlands
NPS Management Policies 2006 (§4.10), recognizes that the night sky

contributes to the visitor experience. The policy further states that the NPS staff

would seek to minimize the intrusion of artificial light into the night scene. In

natural areas, artificial outdoor lighting would be limited to meet basic safety

requirements and would be shielded when possible.

Desired Conditions: Opportunities to view the night sky at John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument are available. Artificial light sources within the

monument do not unacceptably affect night sky viewing opportunities or

wildlife populations.

Strategies: To the extent possible, the NPS staff would work within a regional

context to protect the night sky quality. 

NPS staff would seek to minimize the intrusion of artificial light into the night

scene. In natural areas, artificial outdoor lighting would be limited to meet

basic safety requirements and would be shielded when possible. If it is

determined that light sources within the monument affect views of the night

sky, alternatives would be studied to address the impact, such as shielding

lights, changing lamp types, or eliminating unnecessary sources. 

NPS managers would participate in planning meetings at the state and county

level to protect the night sky from light from new developments adjacent to

the monument.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§4.9) and NPS Director's Order 47: Sound

Preservation and Noise Management, require NPS managers to strive to

preserve the natural soundscape (natural quiet) associated with the physical

and biological resources (i.e., the sounds of the wind in the trees). The concept

of natural quiet was further defined in the Report on Effects of Aircraft

Overflights on the National Park System (NPS 1995):

What is natural quiet? Parks and wildernesses offer a variety of unique,

pristine sounds not found in most urban or suburban environments. They

also offer a complete absence of sounds that are found in such

environments. Together, these two conditions provide a very special

dimension to a park experience—quiet, itself. In the absence of any

discernible source of sound (especially man-made), quiet is an important

element of the feeling of solitude. Quiet also affords visitors an opportunity

to hear faint or very distant sounds, such as animal activity and waterfalls.

Such an experience provides an important perspective on the vastness of the

environment in which the visitor is located, often beyond the visual

boundaries determined by trees, terrain, and the like. In considering natural

quiet as a resource, the ability to clearly hear the delicate and quieter

intermittent sounds of nature, the ability to experience interludes of extreme

quiet for their own sake, and the opportunity to do so for extended periods

of time, is what natural quiet is all about.

The primary sources of noise in John Day Fossil Beds National Monument are

motor vehicles driving through the monument and the sounds of people in

developed areas, such as the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center and the

Hancock Field Station.

Lightscape

Management

Soundscape

Management

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

28 Background
Cultural Resources

Desired Conditions: Visitors have opportunities in John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument to experience natural sounds in an unimpaired condition.

The sounds of civilization are generally confined to developed areas and

specific hours of the day. Disruptions from visitors are minimized, ensuring a

high-quality visitor experience.

Strategies: NPS managers would minimize noise generated by management

activities by strictly regulating NPS administrative use of noise-producing

machinery such as motorized equipment. Noise would be a consideration

when procuring and using NPS equipment.

NPS staff would work with the Department of Defense and Whidbey Island

Naval Air Station to develop a process to address the occasional impacts on

natural soundscapes that arise from military flights over the monument.

The NPS Organic Act and NPS Management Policies 2006 (§1.4, 1.6, 3.1) call

for the National Park Service to conserve and protect scenic vistas. Scenic vistas

are an important element of the visitor experience at John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument. These views are both within and outside the monument.

Actions by others outside the monument can affect visitor experiences. 

Desired Conditions: The scenic views at John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument continue to stir imaginations, inspire, and provide opportunities for

visitors to understand, appreciate, and forge personal connections to the

monument. Intrinsically important scenic vistas and scenic features are not

significantly diminished by man-made developments.

Strategies: NPS staff would continue to work with Grant and Wheeler

Counties to incorporate viewshed issues into county land use plans, and to

express concerns at land use hearings regarding potential developments that

might affect those viewsheds.

NPS staff would work with adjacent and nearby landowners to minimize any

visual impacts from nearby developments and to ensure that developments do

not encroach on the monument.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§5.3.5.1) calls for the National Park Service to

manage archeological resources in situ unless physical disturbance is justified

and mitigated by data recovery or other means in concurrence with the State

Historic Preservation Officer. See also 36 CFR Part 79 and the Secretary of the

Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Archeological Documentation.

Over a hundred known archeological sites are contained within the three units

of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. Additional undiscovered sites may

be present in the monument.

Desired Conditions: Archeological sites are protected in an undisturbed

condition unless it is determined through formal processes that disturbance or

natural deterioration is unavoidable. 

Soundscape

Management

(continued)

Archeological

Resources

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 29

Scenic Viewshed

Protection
Strategies: Archeological surveys would continue as needed in the monument

to identify, inventory, and document archeological sites and determine their

significance regarding eligibility for the National Register of Historic Places. 

When disturbance or deterioration is unavoidable, the site through data

recovery is professionally excavated and documented, and the resulting

artifacts, materials, and records are curated and conserved in consultation with

the Oregon State Historic Preservation Officer and appropriate American Indian

tribes. Some archeological sites that can be adequately protected may be

interpreted to visitors.

The National Historic Preservation Act calls for analyzing the effects of possible

federal actions on historic structures on or eligible for the national register and

for inventorying and evaluating their significance and condition. NPS

Management Policies 2006 (§5.3.5.4) calls for the treatment of historic

structures, including prehistoric ones, to be based on sound preservation

practice to enable the long-term preservation of a structure's historic features,

materials, and qualities. See also the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for

the Treatment of Historic Properties.

In John Day Fossil Beds National Monument there are historic structures in the

James Cant Ranch Historic District. The district, with its main house and

surrounding outbuildings, is one of the most intact, locally significant examples

of a historic sheep and then cattle ranch in Wheeler and Grant counties,

Oregon.

Desired Conditions: Structures individually eligible for the National Register of

Historic Places or identified as contributing to the Cant Ranch Historic District

are managed to ensure their long-term preservation and protection of

character-defining features. Protection and preservation of historic structures

are emphasized as a critical component of the monument's ongoing

maintenance and resource protection programs.

Strategies: Monitoring of historic structures would continue to ensure the

preservation of qualities that contribute to the listing or eligibility for listing of

historic structures in the national register. 

Protection is and would be in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior's

Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation, unless it is

determined through a formal process that disturbance or natural deterioration

is unavoidable. Then mitigation through documentation would be called for via

consultation with the Oregon State Historic Preservation Officer. Appropriate

preservation treatments for historic structures would be carried out in

accordance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of

Historic Properties. Historic structures requiring rehabilitation, or in rare cases

restoration, would receive further investigation and documentation via a

historic structure report to inform about the condition and recommend

treatment of the historic fabric and architecturally significant features.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§5.3.5.3) calls for gathering ethnographic

information through anthropological and collaborative community research

that recognizes the sensitive nature of such cultural data and documents and

Archeological

Resources

(continued)

Ethnographic

Resources

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

30 Background

Historic Structures
the meanings that traditionally associated groups assign to traditional natural

and cultural resources and the landscapes they form. In accordance with the

National Historic Preservation Act, the purpose is to preserve, conserve, and

encourage the continuation of the diverse traditional prehistoric, historic,

ethnic, and folk cultural traditions that underlie and are a living expression of

American heritage as manifested in the traditional use of ethnographic

resources in park units. Executive Order 13007 also calls for NPS managers to

accommodate the access to and the ceremonial use of American Indian sacred

sites by practitioners and to preserve the sites' physical integrity.

The only known ethnographic resources in John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument are pictographs, although others may exist. No known sacred sites

exist in the monument.

Desired Conditions: All ethnographic resources that are listed in or

determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places are

protected as traditional cultural properties. American Indians associated with

the monument may continue to access certain sites of cultural importance. Any

traditional use is consistent with the monument's purposes and the protection

of resources. 

If sacred sites are found at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, the

National Park Service accommodates access to and ceremonial use of American

Indian sacred sites by Indian religious practitioners and avoids adversely

affecting the physical integrity of these sacred sites. 

If there are American Indian uses of a unit of the national park system, NPS

general regulations on access to and use of natural and cultural resources in

the unit are applied in an informed and balanced manner. This application of

regulations is consistent with monument purposes, does not unreasonably

interfere with possible American Indian use of any traditional areas, and does

not result in the degradation of monument resources.

Strategies: The national monument would continue to adhere to all American

Indian treaty obligations. Appropriate cultural anthropological research would

be conducted in cooperation with groups associated with the monument to

identify potential ethnographic resources, determine their significance as

traditional cultural properties, and suggest preservation treatments and

management options. 

NPS managers would consult with tribal governments before taking actions

that affect federally recognized tribal governments. These consultations are to

be open and candid so that all interested parties may evaluate for themselves

the potential impacts of relevant proposals.

If disturbance of ethnographic resources is unavoidable, formal consultation

with the Oregon State Historic Preservation Officer and with the appropriate

American Indian tribes would be conducted. 

This consultation would be in accordance with the National Historic

Preservation Act, as amended, the implementing regulations of the Advisory

Ethnographic

Resources

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 31
Council on Historic Places, and other laws, policies, regulations or agreements,

and would be conducted openly and candidly for the potential impact of

relevant proposals. American Indian tribes would be included in these

consultations as would other American Indian individuals and groups linked by

ties of kinship or culture to ethnically identifiable human remains, sacred

objects, objects of cultural patrimony, and associated funerary objects when

such items may be disturbed or encountered on monument lands. Protection

and preservation of ethnographic resources would be emphasized as a critical

component of the monument's ongoing maintenance and resource protection

programs.

The identities of community consultants and information about sacred and

other culturally sensitive places and practices would be kept confidential when

research agreements or other circumstances warrant.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§5.3.5.2) calls for the preservation of the

physical attributes, biotic systems, and uses of cultural landscapes that

contribute to historical significance. In the monument the James Cant Ranch

Historic District constitutes a historic cultural landscape and is managed as

such. Additional cultural landscapes may exist in the monument but have not

been identified and evaluated.

Desired Conditions: Landscape characteristics and features contributing to

the Cant Ranch Historic District are appropriately protected and preserved,

including rehabilitation and restoration when necessary. Cultural landscape

inventories are completed for the Cant Ranch and other cultural landscapes if

determined potentially eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.

Cultural landscapes in the monument are protected and maintained consistent

with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic

Properties with Guideline's for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes.

Protection and preservation of cultural landscapes is emphasized as a critical

component of the monument's ongoing maintenance and resource protection

programs.

Strategies: Treatment recommendations identified in the "Cultural Landscape

Report: Cant Ranch Historic District" (Taylor and Gilbert 1996) would be carried

out in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the

Treatment of Historic Properties, with Guidelines for the Treatment of Cultural

Landscapes, to ensure long-term preservation objectives.

Potential cultural landscapes would continue to be identified and their national

register eligibility evaluated to assist in future management decisions and to

ensure their protection and preservation.

Management of cultural landscapes would focus on protecting and preserving

a given landscape's physical attributes, biotic systems, and use when that use

contributes to its historical significance. The preservation, rehabilitation,

restoration, or reconstruction of cultural landscapes would be undertaken in

accordance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of

Historic Properties with Guideline's for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes.

Ethnographic

Resources

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

32 Background

Cultural Landscapes
Visitor Use and Experience

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§5.3.5.5) states that the NPS "...will collect,

protect, preserve, provide access to, and use objects, specimens, and archival

and manuscript collections...in the disciplines of archeology, ethnography,

history, biology, geology, and paleontology to aid understanding among park

visitors, and to advance knowledge in the humanities and sciences."

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's paleontological specimens are

stored in the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center. The center features secure

and comfortable work and storage space that meets museum standards on all

counts. 

Natural and cultural history collections are stored in the Cant Ranch House.

Adequate space exists on the third floor of the Cant Ranch House to properly

house historic and ethnographic artifacts and related items.

Desired Conditions: All museum collections and archives and their

component artifacts, objects, specimens, documents, photographs, maps,

plans, and manuscripts, are properly inventoried, accessioned, catalogued,

curated, documented, protected, and preserved. Appropriate provision is made

for the access of the collections by NPS staff and other researchers and for

their use in scientific and historical research, exhibits, and interpretation. The

qualities that contribute to the significance of collections are protected and

preserved in accordance with established NPS museum curation and storage

standards.

Strategies: NPS managers would continue to ensure adequate conditions for

the climate control of collections and means for fire detection and suppression,

integrated pest management, and research and interpretation access are

maintained.

The NPS Organic Act, NPS General Authorities Act, and NPS Management

Policies 2006 (§1.4, 8.1) all address the importance of park units being

available to all Americans to enjoy and experience. Current laws, regulations,

and policies leave considerable room for judgment about the best mix of types

and levels of visitor use activities, programs, and facilities. For this reason, most

decisions related to visitor experience and use are addressed in the alternatives.

However, all visitor use of the national park system must be consistent with the

following guidelines.

Desired Conditions: Monument resources are conserved "unimpaired" for

the enjoyment of future generations. Visitors have opportunities for forms of

enjoyment that are uniquely suited and appropriate to the superlative natural

and cultural resources found in the monument; opportunities continue to be

provided for visitors to understand, appreciate, and enjoy John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument. For all of the monument's units and management zones,

the types and levels of visitor use are consistent with the desired resource and

visitor experience conditions prescribed for those areas. No activities occur that

would cause derogation of the values and purposes for which the monument

was established.

Museum Collections

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 33

Visitor Use and

Experience
Visitor Use and

Experience

(continued)

Public Health and

Safety

Visitors have opportunities to understand and appreciate the significance of

the monument and its resources, and to develop a personal stewardship ethic.

To the extent feasible, all programs, services, and facilities in the monument are

accessible to and usable by all people, including those with disabilities.

High quality public opportunities continue to be available for appropriate uses,

including such activities as hiking, picnicking, photography, sightseeing, and

fishing.

Strategies: All of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's programs and

facilities would be evaluated on a regular basis to ensure that they are

accessible to the extent feasible.

Visitor surveys would be periodically conducted to determine visitor satisfaction

with the monument facilities, NPS management, and the experiences they are

having.

NPS staff would periodically meet with managers from other areas in the

region, such as the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, and tribal

land managers, to improve visitor trip planning, information and orientation;

and enrich interpretation and education opportunities for monument visitors. 

NPS staff would continue to enforce the regulations governing visitor use and

behavior in Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations (36 CFR) and in the

monument's "Superintendent's Compendium."

• Pets must be crated, caged, restrained on a leash 6 feet long or less, or

otherwise physically confined at all times. (36 CFR 2.15)

• Bicycles are prohibited in the monument except on established public roads

and parking areas. (36 CFR 4.30)

• The use of off-road vehicles is prohibited except on public roads and

parking areas. (36 CFR 4.10)

NPS staff would continue to monitor visitor comments on issues such as

crowding, availability of parking, user conflicts, and facility conditions, and

would monitor for resource impacts caused by visitors. Should any of the

trends increase to levels unacceptable to managers, the NPS staff would

consider what actions to take. (Additional information on user capacity can be

found on pages 59-62.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§8.2.5) states that the saving of human life

would take precedence over all other management actions as the National Park

Service strives to protect human life and provide for injury-free visits. Other

federal statutes and regulations that apply to the protection of public health

and safety include Director's Order 50 and RM-50 "Safety and Health";

Director's Order 58 and RM-58 "Structural Fire Management"; Director's Order

83 and RM-83 "Public Health"; Director's Order 51 and RM-51 "Emergency

Medical Services"; Director's Order 30 and RM-30 "Hazard and Solid Waste

Management; and OSHA 29CFR.

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

34 Background
Other Topics

Desired Conditions: While recognizing that there are limitations on its

capability to totally eliminate all hazards, the National Park Service and its

partners, contractors, and cooperators work to cooperatively provide a safe

and healthful environment for visitors and employees. The NPS staff strive to

identify recognizable threats to safety and health and protect property by

applying nationally accepted standards. Consistent with mandates and

nonimpairment, the NPS staff reduces or removes known hazards or applies

appropriate mitigating measures, such as closures, guarding, gating, education,

and other actions. 

Strategies: A documented safety program would be maintained in the

monument to address health and safety concerns and identify appropriate

levels of action and activities.

Maintenance efforts would continue to ensure that all potable water systems

and waste water systems in the monument would continue to meet state and

federal requirements. 

Interpretive signs and materials would be provided as appropriate to notify

visitors of potential safety concerns, hazards and procedures to help provide for

a safe visit to the monument and to ensure visitors are aware of possible risks

of certain activities.

NPS staff would continue to work with local emergency and public health

officials to make reasonable efforts to search for lost persons and rescue sick,

injured or stranded persons.

Climate change is occurring and is expected to affect the monument's

weather, vegetation, wildlife, and visitors (e.g., use seasons). These changes

will have direct implications on resource management and monument

operations, and on the way visitors use and experience the monument.

Although climate change will affect the park during the life of this plan, many

of the specific effects, the rate of changes, and the severity of impacts are not

known. 

While there are no laws or policies that provide direct guidance on addressing

climate change, there is guidance that indirectly addresses climate change,

including the NPS Organic Act, Executive Order 13423 (includes requirements

for the reduction of greenhouse gases and other energy and water

conservation measures), Department of the Interior Secretarial Order 3226

(ensures that climate change impacts be taken into account in connection with

Departmental planning and decision making), and NPS Management Policies

2006 (including sections on environmental leadership [§1.8], sustainable

energy design [§9.1.1.6],and energy management [§9.1.7].

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is a leader in

its efforts to address climate change, reducing its greenhouse gas emissions

and increasing its use of renewable energy and other sustainable practices so it

Public Health and

Safety

(continued)

Climate Change

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 35
is a carbon neutral park. Education and interpretive efforts help visitors

understand the process of global warming, climate change, changes to

monument resources, and the wider environment, and how they can respond.

NPS staff promote innovation, best practices, adaptive management, and

partnerships to respond to the challenges of climate change and their effects

on monument resources. NPS staff proactively monitor, plan, and adapt to the

effects of climate change by using the best information as it becomes

available.

Strategies: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument will become a member

of the Climate Friendly Parks program, measuring monument-based

greenhouse emissions, developing sustainable strategies to mitigate these

emissions and adapt to climate change impacts, educating the public about

these efforts, and developing future action plans. Scientific studies and

inventories will be encouraged to identify and document changes caused by

climate change, to predict potential changes, and to assist in identifying

potential responses to climate change. 

Since emissions from vehicles contribute to the monument's emissions, options

to improve transportation efficiencies will be explored, including NPS and

visitor activities. Emissions from visitors driving to get to the monument, and

from employees commuting to work and traveling for business all add to the

emissions associated with the monument. Opportunities for alternative

transportation options, as well as effective carbon offset strategies, will be

explored. 

Education and interpretive efforts will engage NPS employees, partners,

visitors, and the public on climate change, providing the latest monument

research and monitoring data and trends, informing the public about what

responses are being taken at the monument, and inspiring visitors to act to

reduce their carbon footprint.

NPS staff will work with local, regional, and national agencies, universities, and

other partners to conduct scenario planning for climate change, and identify

actions that can be taken to respond to these changes.

Anticipated climate change impacts, such as changes in vegetation and river

flows, will be incorporated into management plans.

(See also the strategies identified under "Sustainable Design/Development”)

Sustainability can be described as doing things in ways that do not compromise

the environment or its capacity to provide for present and future generations.

Sustainable practices consider local and global consequences to minimize the

short- and long-term environmental impacts of human actions and

developments through resource conservation, recycling, waste minimization,

and the use of energy-efficient and ecologically responsible materials and

techniques.

Over the past several years, the federal government has been emphasizing the

adoption of sustainable practices. In particular, Executive Order 12873

Climate Change

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

36 Background

Sustainable 

Design/Development
mandates federal agency recycling and waste prevention; and Executive Order

12902 mandates energy efficiency and water conservation at federal facilities.

NPS Management Policies 2006 (§1.8, 1.9.5.2, 8.2, 9.1.1, 9.2) also call for

sustainable operations, facilities, and uses in park units.

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is a leader in

sustainable practices. Administrative and visitor facilities are harmonious with

monument resources, compatible with natural processes, aesthetically pleasing,

functional, as accessible as possible to all segments of the population, energyefficient, and cost-effective. All decisions regarding operations, facilities

management, and development in the monument-from the initial concept

through design and construction-reflect principles of resource preservation.

Thus, all monument developments and operations are sustainable to the

maximum degree possible and practical. New developments and existing

facilities are located, built, and modified according to the Guiding Principles of

Sustainable Design (NPS 1993) or other similar guidelines. John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument has state-of-the-art water systems for conserving water,

and uses energy conservation technologies and renewable energy sources

whenever possible. Biodegradable, nontoxic, and durable materials are used in

the monument whenever possible. The reduction, use, and recycling of

materials is promoted, while materials that are nondurable, environmentally

detrimental, or that require transportation from great distances are avoided as

much as possible.

Strategies: NPS staff would work with experts both inside and outside the

National Park Service to make John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's facilities and programs sustainable. Partnerships would be sought to implement sustainable practices in the monument. NPS staff also would work with stakeholders and business partners to augment NPS environmental leadership and sustainability efforts.

NPS staff would be educated to have a comprehensive understanding of their

relationship to environmental leadership and sustainability.

NPS staff would support and encourage the service of suppliers and

contractors that follow sustainable practices. 

Energy usage would be monitored, and energy efficient practices and

renewable energy sources would be promoted wherever possible.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument's interpretive programs would

mention sustainable and nonsustainable practices. Visitors would be educated

on the principles of environmental leadership and sustainability through

exhibits, media, and printed material.

Monument managers would perform value analysis and value engineering,

including life cycle analysis, to examine the energy, environmental, and

economic implications of proposed developments.

NPS managers would measure and track environmental compliance and

performance. Audits would ensure environmental compliance, emphasize best

management practices, and educate employees at all levels about

environmental management responsibilities.

Sustainable

Design/Development

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 37
The location, type, and design of multimodal transportation facilities (e.g.,

roads, bridges, parking areas, sidewalks, bikeways, pedestrian trails, transit

centers and shelters) strongly influence the quality of the visitor experience and

the preservation of park unit resources. These systems also affect, to a great

degree, how and where park unit resources would be affected by visitors. NPS

Management Policies 2006 (§9.2) calls for NPS managers to identify solutions

to transportation issues that preserve natural and cultural resources while

providing a high-quality visitor experience. Management decisions regarding

transportation require a comprehensive alternatives analysis and thorough

understanding of their consequences. Traditional practices of building wider

roads and larger parking areas to accommodate more motor vehicles are not

accepted practice today. 

Visitors access the three units of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

primarily in private motor vehicles via county and state highways. How people

travel to the monument's three units and how they travel within the

monument plays a major role in the protection of monument resources, in

visitor levels and the visitor experience, and the need for modified or new

infrastructure. In this regard, it is critical for the National Park Service to

participate as a partner in local, regional, and statewide planning efforts that

would affect transportation to and within the monument.

Desired Conditions: Multimodal transportation facilities in the monument

provide access for the protection, use, and enjoyment of monument resources.

They preserve the integrity of the surroundings, respect ecological processes,

protect monument resources, and provide the highest visual quality and a

rewarding visitor experience.

Strategies: NPS staff would participate in transportation studies and planning

processes that may result in links to the monument's units or impacts to

monument resources. NPS managers would work closely with other federal

agencies (e.g., U.S. Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway

Administration), tribal, state and local governments (e.g., Oregon Department

of Transportation), regional planning bodies, citizen groups, and others to

enhance partnering and funding opportunities, and to encourage effective

regional transportation planning. Working with these agencies and other

stakeholders on transportation issues, NPS managers would seek reasonable

access to John Day Fossil Bed National Monument units, and intermodal

connections to regional multimodal transportation systems.

In general, the preferred modes of transportation would be those that

contribute to maximum visitor enjoyment of, and minimum adverse impacts to,

monument resources and values. Before a decision is made to design,

construct, expand, or upgrade transportation access to or within the

monument, nonconstruction alternatives—such as distributing visitors to

alternative locations—would be fully explored. If nonconstruction alternatives

would not achieve satisfactory results, then a development solution should

consider whether the project

• is appropriate and necessary to meet management needs

• is designed with extreme care and sensitivity to the landscape through

which it passes

Transportation to and

within the Monument 

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

38 Background
• would not cause adverse impacts to natural and cultural resources, and

would minimize or mitigate those impacts that cannot be avoided;

• reduces traffic congestion, noise, air pollution, and adverse effects on

monument resources and values 

• would not violate federal, state, or local air pollution control plans or

regulations

• would not cause use in the areas to exceed the areas' user capacity

• incorporates the principles of energy conservation and sustainability

• is able to demonstrate financial and operational sustainability

• incorporates universal design principles to provide for accessibility for all

people, including those with disabilities

• takes maximum advantage of interpretive opportunities and scenic values

• is based on a comprehensive and multi-disciplinary approach that is fully

consistent with the monument's General Management Plan and Asset

Management Plan

• enhances the visitor experience by offering new or improved interpretive

or visitor opportunities, by simplifying travel within the monument, or by

making it easier or safer to see monument features

The Telecommunications Act of 1996 directs all federal agencies to assist in the

national goal of achieving a seamless telecommunications system throughout

the United States by accommodating requests by telecommunication

companies for the use of property, rights-of-way, and easements to the extent

allowable under each agency's mission. The National Park Service is legally

obligated to permit telecommunication infrastructure in park units if such

facilities can be structured to avoid interference with park unit purposes.

Rights-of-way for utilities to pass over, under, or through NPS property may be

issued only pursuant to specific statutory authority, and generally only if there

is no practicable alternative to such use of NPS lands. Statutory authorities in

16 USC 5 and in NPS Management Policies 2006 (§8.6.4) provide guidance on

these rights-of-way.

Columbia Power Cooperative has powerline rights-of-way in John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument's three units. The phone company has a right-of-way

for a phone line to the Hancock Field Station. There are commercial

telecommunication facilities in the monument.

Desired Conditions: Monument resources or public enjoyment of the

monument are not denigrated by nonconforming uses. Telecommunication

structures are permitted in the monument to the extent they do not jeopardize

the monument's mission and resources. No new nonconforming use or rightsof-way are permitted through the monument without specific statutory

Transportation to and

within the Monument

(continued)

Utilities and

Communication

Facilities

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 39
authority and approval by the director of the National Park Service or his/her

representative, and are permitted only if there is no practicable alternative to

such use of NPS lands.

Strategies: NPS staff would work with service companies, local communities,

and the public to locate new utility lines and maintain existing lines so that

there is minimal effect on monument resources.

If necessary, and there are no other options, new or reconstructed utilities and

communications infrastructure would be placed in association with existing

structures and along roadways or other established corridors in developed

areas. For reconstruction or extension into undisturbed areas, routes would be

selected that minimize impacts on the monument's natural, cultural, and visual

resources. Utility lines would be placed underground to the maximum extent

possible, away from sensitive fossil resources.

NPS policies would be followed in processing applications for commercial

telecommunications facilities.

Utilities and

Communication

Facilities

(continued)

TOPIC Current Laws and Policies Require That the Following Conditions Be

Achieved at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

40 Background

Historic Ranch, Sheep Rock Unit.
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 41

RELATIONSHIP OF OTHER PLANNING

EFFORTS TO THIS GENERAL 

MANAGEMENT PLAN

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is

located in Grant and Wheeler counties in

east central Oregon. Properties surrounding

the monument include land owned and

managed by private entities, the Bureau of

Land Management, and the state. Land use in

the area is mainly agricultural with some rural

residential use. 

The Confederate Tribes of the Warm Springs

Reservation is over 30 miles from the

monument; however, other tribal-owned

lands (the Pine Creek Conservation Area) are

located adjacent to the Claro Unit of the

monument, across State Highway 218.

Several plans have influenced or have been

influenced by the approved General

Management Plan for John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument. These plans have been

prepared (or are being prepared) by the

National Park Service, the Bureau of Land

Management, the State of Oregon, and Grant

and Wheeler Counties. Some of these plans

are described briefly here, along with their

relationship to this management plan. 

National Park Service Plans

Integrated Pest Management Plan (2005).

This plan outlines the necessary best

management practices and action thresholds

to address both common and potential

impacts by the full spectrum of known pests

on the important cultural, natural, and scenic

resources of the monument for the next 10

years. The plan acknowledges that individual

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices

would be developed as specific tasks or

problems are identified related to

invertebrate accidental pests, museum pests,

orchard pests, vertebrate pests, and exotic

weeds and native plant pests. The plan was

consulted during the development of the

general management plan. This General

Management Plan addresses invasive plant

management as an issue; however, the IPM

plan will continue to provide detailed

guidance on how the monument will conduct

IPM activities.

Socioeconomic Atlas for John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument and its Region

(2005). The atlas provides socioeconomic

data and identifies trends for the John Day

region. The report is a useful reference tool

that can be used by decision makers to better

manage and conserve monument resources.

This atlas was consulted during the

development of the general management

plan.

Wildland Fire Management Plan (2004).

This plan is an operation guide for managing

the monument’s wildland fire and prescribed

fire program. It defines levels of protection

needed to ensure personnel and public safety,

protect facilities and resources, and restore

and perpetuate natural processes. It is a

detailed program of action to carry out fire

management policies and objectives. 

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Visitor Study (2004). This study describes the

activities, expenditures, and attitudes of

people who visited the monument during the

late summer of 2004. The study provides

some important data and insights into visitor

preferences that were used in the

development of alternatives for the general

management plan. 

Superintendent’s Compendium (2003). 

The Superintendent’s Compendium is a list of

designations, closures, permit requirements,

and use restrictions promulgated under the

discretionary authority of the superintendent.

The compendium covers visitor hours; public

use limits; closures and area designations for

specific uses or activities; a list of activities

that require a NPS permit; regulations

regarding preservation of natural, cultural

and archaeological resources; and general

regulations regarding wildlife protection,

hunting and fishing, camping, rock climbing,

boating, and pets among other topics. The

compendium will be modified as necessary to

reflect any changes resulting from

implementation of this general management

plan.
Strategic Plan: 2002–2007 (2002). The

strategic plan describes the purpose,

significance, and interpretive themes of the

monument and outlines the primary mission

goals. The plan also includes a list of

prioritized tasks that are intended to meet the

mission goals. The desired conditions, goals,

and tasks included in the strategic plan will

need to be updated to reflect the

management directions presented in the

approved general management plan. 

Resources Management Plan (1999). This

plan documented natural and cultural

resource management efforts and

deficiencies, and outlined objectives for

future resource management and tasks for

accomplishing those objectives. The longrange plan laid out a course of work and

funding needs for 10 or more years. Although

these documents are no longer being

prepared by the National Park Service, the

existing resources management plan was

used in preparing this plan. A Resource

Stewardship Strategy will be prepared, which

incorporates the management directions

presented in this document.

Cultural Landscape Report: Cant Ranch

Historic District (1996). This report

identified and evaluated existing landscape

features that have historical significance,

reviewed and assessed potential treatments

for agricultural lands associated with the

ranch, and developed guidelines and

recommendations that address treatment of

all cultural landscape resources. This report

was consulted during the development of the

general management plan.

Paleontological Research Plan (1988). 

This plan describes the paleontological and

geological efforts completed to date and the

ongoing resources management program;

identifies the known questions or

information gaps needed to manage the

resource; and suggests general subjects for

future research efforts. It is also intended to

help evaluate both solicited and unsolicited

research proposals and communicate

opportunities for study to the research

community. This plan was consulted during

the development of the general management

plan.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Statement for Management (1983). The

Statement for Management discussed

different influences that affect management

of the monument, including legislative and

administrative requirements, resource

conditions, land uses and trends, visitor uses

and trends, and facilities. Major issues facing

the monument were identified, including

land protection, public awareness,

interpretation and education, research, and

staffing. General management objectives were

identified to resolve these issues. Although

these documents are no longer being

prepared by the National Park Service, the

existing statement for management was used

in preparing this plan.

General Management Plan for John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument (1979).

This plan was prepared after the monument

was established in 1975, and remained as the

monument’s guiding document for 28 years.

It zoned the monument, provided

management direction for resource

management and visitor use, included

acquisition proposals, and provided

monument-wide development concepts. The

new management plan builds on this existing

plan by updating management direction and

identifying new actions for the next 15 to 20

years. 

Cyclic Prospecting Plan (undated). The

Cyclic Prospecting Plan was developed in the

late 1980s. It is a fluid document intended to

anticipate variability in observed patterns of

weathering. The purpose of the plan is to

establish an orderly schedule for canvassing a

wide variety of fossiliferous exposures to

retrieve any scientifically significant

specimens that, once exposed, are subject to

damage. 

Bureau of Land Management (Prineville

District) Plans

John Day River Management Plan; Two

Rivers, John Day, and Baker Resource

42 Background
Management Plan Amendments and Final

EIS (2000). This document includes a

management plan for BLM lands found

within the designated wild and scenic

segments of the John Day River. The

document also amends three resource

management plans that were developed in

the 1980s. The treatment of paleontological

and cultural and historic resources on lands

within the John Day Basin was not changed

as a result of this plan. The final plan includes

land use decisions and resource allocations

that are intended to protect and improve

river values. This plan was considered during

the development of the general management

plan. 

“John Day Basin Resource Management

Plan” (undated). In 2006 the Bureau of Land

Management (Prineville District) began

updating guidance for BLM lands in the John

Day Basin. The plan will address resource

management, public access, land tenure

adjustments, special management areas,

visual resources management, and other

issues. The BLM’s planning process for the

basin is expected to be completed in the fall

of 2008.

Oregon Parks & Recreation 

Department Plans

Oregon Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor

Recreation Plan (SCORP): 2003–2007

(2002). The SCORP is Oregon’s basic fiveyear plan for outdoor recreation. It

establishes the framework for statewide

comprehensive outdoor recreation planning

and the implementation process. The plan

includes analysis on recreation needs and

trends; defines recreation roles and key

statewide outdoor recreation issues; and

develops statewide outdoor recreation goals,

objectives and strategies. This plan was

considered during the development of the

general management plan.

Oregon Trails 2005–2014: A Statewide

Action Plan (2005). This plan is Oregon’s

“official plan for recreational trail

management” through 2014, serving as a

statewide and regional information and

planning tool to assist recreation providers

(local, state, federal, and private) in providing

trail opportunities and promoting access to

trails and waterways. It also identifies how

the state’s limited resources will be allocated

for motorized, nonmotorized, and water trail

projects throughout Oregon. Some of the

plan’s recommendations are addressed in the

General Management Plan through proposed

new trails and recreation amenities. 

Grant County Plans

Comprehensive Land Use Plan (1996). This

plan is designed to provide long-range

guidance on growth and development issues

in Grant County. Portions of this plan most

relevant to the General Management Plan

include policies related to agricultural lands,

forest lands, natural resources, open space,

scenic and historic resources, recreation,

economics, and energy conservation. This

plan was consulted during the development

of the general management plan. This general

management plan is consistent with the

county’s land use plan. 

Wheeler County Plans

Comprehensive Plan (2003). This plan is

designed to provide long-range guidance on

growth and development issues in Wheeler

County. Portions of this plan most relevant to

this General Management Plan are those

related to agricultural lands; forest lands;

open spaces; scenic and historic areas;

natural resources; air, water, and land

resources quality; recreational needs; and

economic conservation. This plan was

consulted during the development of the

general management plan. This general

mangement plan is consistent with the

county’s land use plan. 

Oregon Paleo Lands Institute Plans

Oregon Paleo Plan Prospectus (undated).

Also known as the “Paleo Project,” this plan

outlines a comprehensive strategy to advance

the understanding and appreciation of

Oregon’s paleontological resources. A major

component of the plan is the Paleo Learning

Center, which is proposed to be located in

Fossil. This plan was considered during the

development of the general management

plan.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 43
PLANNING ISSUES AND CONCERNS

NPS staff, the general public, and

representatives from county, state, and

federal agencies, and various organizations

identified a variety of issues and concerns

during scoping (early information gathering)

for this general management plan. An issue is

defined as an opportunity, conflict, or

problem regarding the use or management of

public lands. Comments were solicited at

public meetings, through planning

newsletters, and on the monument’s web site. 

Comments received during scoping

demonstrated there is much that the public

likes about the national monument—its

management, use, and facilities. The issues

and concerns generally involve determining

the appropriate visitor uses, types and levels

of facilities, services, and activities that are

compatible with desired resource conditions. 

The following major issues and concerns

were identified.

Hancock Mammal Quarry

This site is of great importance to scientists’

knowledge of vertebrate fossils from the early

Tertiary Period. Preliminary analysis suggests

that this is the best early Oligocene vertebrate

fauna of the northwestern United States and

western Canada. The site was briefly opened

by researchers in the late 1950s and again in

the 1960s. There are differing opinions on

whether or not the quarry should be

reopened. Much information likely would be

gained by reopening the quarry, and it would

add a new facet to the visitor experience. But

opening the quarry would require additional

funds and staff—there would be a substantial

cost in this operation. There are also

questions regarding the feasibility of

reopening the quarry as the lateral extent of

the fossiliferous strata is not known—a very

large amount of material may have to be

removed to gain access to the fossils. And

without careful monitoring, there also would

be increased potential for vandalism and theft

of fossils. 

Visitor Opportunities and Visitor Facilities

Decisions need to be made on what, if any,

new facilities or facility improvements should

be made in the monument. Restrooms and

trails are among the facilities the public has

identified as a need in the monument.

Formalizing existing social trails and

maintaining new trails can increase

opportunities for the public to experience

and enjoy the monument’s resources, but

also can increase the potential for resource

impacts. Providing or maintaining new

facilities also can increase the need for

additional funding and staff.

User Capacity

Visitors have adversely affected resources and

the quality of visitors’ experiences in a few

areas of the monument, particularly in the

Clarno Unit, which is used by large groups. 

With the potential for some increased

visitation in the future, there also is the

potential for unacceptable impacts to

monument resources in some areas.

Implementation of a user capacity framework

will help ensure that desired monument

resource conditions and visitor experience

opportunities are maintained.

Cant Ranch

The James Cant Ranch Historic District is an

important part of the monument’s story. The

commitment and level of cultural landscape

rehabilitation of the ranch is an important

issue for the monument. Decisions need to be

made on whether or not to continue

irrigating the agricultural fields or to restore

the fields to a more natural condition.

River Corridor

Natural processes along the John Day River

corridor are hampered by the presence of

bank armoring and past ranching practices.

Alterations of the river channel and its

floodplain have resulted in changes to

riparian communities. Although the NPS staff

could take a variety of actions to restore the

river corridor within the monument, land

uses upstream of the monument would

continue to affect the river corridor. How

much should the NPS staff devote to

restoring the river corridor in an era of tight

budgets?

44 Background
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 45

Alien Species

Invasive alien plants have become established

throughout much of the monument and

threaten native species. If left untreated, the

native habitat and natural character of the

area would be severely impacted. Weed

management, including the continued use of

prescribed fire to control an expanding

western juniper population, is an issue that

the monument must address.

These issues are briefly addressed in this

plan; however, they are addressed in depth in

the monument’s Integrated Pest Management

Plan (2005) and Wildland Fire Management

Plan (2004).

Monument Operations

Staffing and maintenance needs would likely

increase as visitation in the monument

increases. The geographical separation of the

monument’s three units presents operational

challenges. Current funding levels also

present challenges to monument operations

and management.

Partnerships

Partnerships are a key to meeting and

expanding the monument’s ability to study

and manage paleontological resources, as

well as to educate and inform local residents,

students, and others about the monument.

The NPS staff have cooperated with the

Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest

Service, Bonneville Power Administration,

and Warm Springs Indian Tribes in this

regard. With a tight and decreasing budget,

partnerships are an important aspect of the

management of John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument. To help fully realize the

monument’s purpose, existing partnerships

need to be strengthened, and new

partnerships need to be sought.

Boundaries of the Monument

The monument’s present boundaries do not

encompass all of the important and

fundamental resources associated with the

monument. Without action, there is a

concern that some of these resources may be

lost. Minor boundary adjustments may be

needed for resource protection and improved

land management.

Climate Change

Climate change is a long-term phenomenon

resulting from the effects of global warming

that has affected natural and human systems

world-wide. Changes within the natural

systems of the Intermountain west and the

John Day region include:

• Temperatures are increasing – average

temperatures throughout the year have

increased, with the greatest increases

occurring in springtime temperatures.

Nighttime temperatures have increased by

3.2 degrees Fahrenheit. The frequency and

intensity of wildland fire has increased,

with longer fire seasons.

• Precipitation is declining – the spring/

summer flow volume of area rivers and

creeks has declined by 22%. The median

flow date of the John Day River has

shifted 10 days earlier over the last

century. Other expected hydrologic

changes include increased winter flows

and decreased summer flows.

These changes are expected to continue and

possibly accelerate over time. 

Because the drivers of climate change are

largely outside the monument, the National

Park Service alone does not have the ability

to prevent climate change from happening.

The full extent of climate change impacts to

resources and visitor experience is not

known, nor do managers and policy makers

yet agree on the most effective response

mechanisms for minimizing impacts and

adapting to change. Thus, unlike other issues,

this plan does not provide definitive solutions

or directions to resolving the issue of

controlling impacts of climate change on

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.

Rather, the plan provides some general

directions and strategies that can help

minimize the monument’s contribution to

climate change (see pages 35-36). The plan

also recognizes that the management actions

and facilities being proposed need to be

adopted with future climate change and

impacts in mind as past conditions are not

necessarily useful guides for future planning. 
The NPS staff will consider this issue and

incorporate it into its management strategies

and operations in order to reduce the 

monument’s contribution to climate change

and adapt and respond to the effects of 

climate change on monument resources.

46 Background

Painted Hills Unit.
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 47

INTRODUCTION

Many aspects of the desired condition of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument are

defined in the establishing legislation, the monument’s purpose and significance

statements, and the servicewide mandates and policies. During the development of this

plan, the National Park Service solicited input from the public, NPS staff, governmental

agencies, tribal officials, and others regarding issues and desired conditions for John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument. Planning team members gathered information about

existing visitor use and the condition of the monument’s facilities and resources. Then a

set of seven management zones and three management alternatives were developed to

reflect the range of ideas proposed by NPS staff and the public. 

Following is a description of the selected alternative, the new general management plan

for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.

Under the plan, resource protection, research, and visitor opportunities will be

enhanced while operational efficiencies will be improved. Natural conditions in the

monument will be restored and enhanced where considered most effective. Visitor

opportunities will be expanded through improvements in existing facilities,

establishment of new trails, and increased interpretive efforts. Sustainability of

monument operations will be stressed. 

Monument staff will focus on gaining a greater understanding of the monument’s

paleontological resources through expanded research. The monument staff will seek

more partnerships with other research institutions and museums while expanding the

permanent and volunteer research staff at the monument. On a regional level, the

monument staff will increase the amount of partnerships in the John Day Basin.

Interpretive programs will be implemented at locations such as the mammal quarry and

the public will have better access to important research areas that may currently be

difficult to access or are unpublicized. 

In an effort to minimize human impacts within the monument, visitors will be

encouraged to use existing designated trails, and human-created unofficial trails will be

eliminated. Group sizes will be limited in the backcountry. Construction of new

monument facilities will be limited and will focus on improving visitor opportunities. It is

important to stress that although new visitor opportunities will be offered, the National

Park Service will continue to maintain and protect natural and cultural resources in the

monument and not permit new developments that would be inappropriate for the

monument. 

Where possible, any new facilities will be constructed in already disturbed areas.

Disturbance to sensitive areas such as wetlands will also be avoided or mitigated

whenever possible.

As appropriate, archeological surveys and/or monitoring will precede any ground

disturbance associated with excavation or construction, and archeological resources that

are listed in or eligible for listing in the national register will be avoided to the greatest

extent possible. To appropriately preserve and protect national register-listed or national

register-eligible historic structures and cultural landscapes, all stabilization, preservation

and rehabilitation efforts, as well as daily, cyclical, and seasonal maintenance, will be

The Plan
undertaken in accordance with the Secretary

of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of

Historic Properties (1995).

Management Zones

Management zones apply to different areas of

the monument and consist of descriptions of

the desired conditions for resources and

visitor experiences in those different

areas.Together, they identify the widest range

of potential resource conditions, visitor

experience, and facilities for the monument

that fall within the scope of the monument’s

purpose, significance, and special mandates.

Seven management zones were identified for

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument:

cultural, frontcountry, pedestrian,

backcountry, primitive, transportation, and

operations.

The seven management zones identified for

the monument are presented in table 2.

Visitor experience, resource conditions, and

appropriate activities and facilities are

described for each management zone. 

Figure 2: Clarno Unit map; Figure 3: Painted

Hills Unit map; and Figure 4: Sheep Rock

Unit map show how John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument would be zoned under

the plan. Most of the monument would be

included in the backcountry or primitive

zones, with a few relatively small

frontcountry, cultural, and monument

operations zones. Popular trails are generally

included within the pedestrian zone. Existing

circulation patterns in the monument would

be maintained; therefore, all primary roads

are included in the transportation corridor

zone.

Historic Ranch, Sheep Rock Unit.

48 The Plan
Management

Zone

Resource

Conditions

Visitor

Experience 

Facilities

CULTURAL

The primary purpose of

the cultural zone is to

protect the resources

of the James Cant

Ranch Historic District.

These resources will be

managed intact and

for a high level of

protection. A diversity

of orientation, outdoor

recreation, and

interpretive

opportunities may be

provided, intermixed

within both natural

and developed

environments, and

supported by a variety

of visitor services that

complement and

enhance the

experience.

FRONTCOUNTRY

The purpose of the

frontcountry zone is to

provide convenient

access to developed

visitor use areas that

provide for high

density use and

support services. This

zone includes

trailheads and areas

that are used for

operational and

administrative

functions, as well as

areas used for access,

sanitation, and other

needs.

Visitors will be

provided with a wide

range of recreational,

interpretive and

educational

opportunities

supported by a variety

of visitor services.

High levels of visitor

encounters will be

expected and groups

of all sizes would be

accommodated.

Intended to 

accommodate visitors,

these areas could

provide visitor

orientation,

interpretation,

education, and other

services.

Visitors will be

provided convenient

and easy access to

developed, high use

areas. 

Moderate to high

levels of visitor

encounters in these

developed areas could

be expected.

Intended to

accommodate visitors,

these areas could

provide visitor

orientation,

interpretation,

education, and other

monument services.

Facilities in this zone

will include historic

buildings, outbuildings,

associated landscape

features (such as

fences and ditches),

developed trails,

interpretive panels, and

signs. Facilities could

include visitor parking

areas, picnic areas, and

restrooms. This zone

includes the

monument's

administrative

headquarters.

Examples of facilities

that might be

permitted include

picnic areas, trailheads,

parking areas,

restrooms, drinking

fountains,

informational signs,

universally accessible

trails, and maintained

(paved or unpaved)

trails.

Paleontological resources will be

maintained and/or retrieved in

the least intrusive manner.

Paleontological mitigation will be

performed to accommodate

features of the historic district.

Natural resources could be

modified to accommodate

visitors, visitor services, and

facilities.

Cultural resources will be

managed to preserve and protect

features of the historic district.

Because these areas will be

managed for high visitor use

levels, minor natural resource

impacts associated with visitors

will be tolerated. There also will

be allowance for minimal natural

resource impacts associated with

visitor facilities.

Paleontological resources of

scientific value will continue to

be stabilized in place, periodically

prospected, or quarried. In some

cases, specimens may be

exposed in place and stabilized

for public appreciation. Quarries

may be preserved intact.

Where appropriate, natural

resources will be maintained in

their natural condition and

appearance. 

Natural resources could be

modified to accommodate

monument operations.

All cultural resources will be

preserved and protected. 

Because these areas will be

managed for high visitor use

levels, minor natural resource 

Table 2: Management Zones

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 49
Management

Zone

Resource

Conditions

Visitor

Experience 

Facilities

FRONTCOUNTRY

(continued)

PEDESTRIAN

The purpose of the

pedestrian zone is to

provide high-use

trailheads and trail

corridors that access

prime monument

features.

These areas will be

predominately natural

but with much

evidence of the sights

and sounds of people.

BACKCOUNTRY

The purpose of the

backcountry zone is to

provide access to

dispersed recreational

opportunities within a

natural setting that

remains largely

undeveloped. These

areas will be managed

for low to moderate

levels of visitor

encounters, limited

impacts to resource

protection, and public

safety.

High use areas and trail

corridors in this zone

will provide access to

prime monument

features. Visitors will

be able to see, touch,

smell, and hear the

resources as they move

along well-defined

trails and walkways.

The experience will be

highly social and

interpretive, with

consideration for the

natural appearance of

the area. Visitor uses,

sites, and trails might

be intensively managed

to ensure resource

protection and public

safety.

Visitors will have an

opportunity to get

away from the sights

and sounds of a

developed environment

and explore the natural

features of the

monument. Although

trails will occur in this

zone, the emphasis

would be on dispersed

non-motorized

recreational activities

within a natural

setting. 

There will be

opportunities for a

range of visitor 

Facilities that might be

present include

trailheads, heavily used

trails (which could be

paved or unpaved),

foot bridges, and

interpretive media.

Small visitor support

structures, such as

restrooms, benches,

and picnic tables,

would be appropriate.

To the extent feasible,

facilities and services

will be accessible to

people with disabilities. 

Examples of facilities

that might occur here

include improved

unpaved trails, bridges,

stairs, and boardwalks.

impacts associated with visitors

will be tolerated. There also will

be allowances for minimal

natural resource impacts

associated with visitor facilities.

Paleontological resources of

scientific value will continue to

be stabilized in place, periodically

prospected, or quarried. In some

cases, specimens may be

exposed in place and stabilized

for public appreciation. Quarries

may be preserved intact.

Natural resources could be

modified for essential visitor and

monument operation needs, but

they would be changed in ways

consistent with the natural

environment, natural processes,

and scenic quality of the

adjacent zones. 

All cultural resources will be

preserved and protected. 

Tolerance for impacts relating to

visitor use will be moderate; the

zone primarily will accommodate

activities such as hiking and

walking.

Paleontological resources will be

maintained and/or retrieved in

the least intrusive manner

possible, e.g., all quarries would

be restored to an appearance

similar to that which existed prior

to excavation.

Natural resources will be

maintained predominately in

their natural conditions and most

natural processes would

predominate.

Tolerance for resource

degradation will be low.

All cultural resources will be

preserved and protected.

50 The Plan
Management

Zone

Resource

Conditions

Visitor

Experience 

Facilities

BACKCOUNTRY

(continued)

PRIMITIVE

The purpose of the

primitive zone is to

provide for minimal

visitor encounters,

personal challenge,

and self-discovery

within an intact natural

and wildland

environment. These

areas provide visitors

with an opportunity to

be immersed in nature. 

TRANSPORTATION

The transportation

zone includes

developed road

corridors and adjacent

road rights-of-way

used for access, and

for visitor interpretive

and educational

purposes.

encounters from

relative solitude to

informal gatherings

depending upon time

of week or season.

Visitors will be in a

wildland environment.

They will be provided

with opportunities to

experience the natural

sounds, closeness to

nature, and a sense of

remoteness and selfreliance.

There will be only

occasional encounters

with others outside of

one's group.

Visitors will have the

opportunity to

experience a sense of

discovery and

adventure in a nonmotorized setting.

Visitors will access and

experience the

monument primarily by

traveling on rural

highways and

secondary roads. Travel

time will be dependent

on the visitor's

destination. 

Automobiles, buses,

and other motorized

vehicles will have

access to the

monument via safe

and efficient roadways.

No trails or facilities

will be provided.

Examples of facilities

include paved and

gravel roads,

interpretive signs,

pullouts, waysides,

guard rails, and

associated

improvements.

Tolerance for impacts relating to

visitor use and development will

be low; the zone would

accommodate dispersed visitor

use activities such as hiking and

walking.

Paleontological resources will be

maintained and/or retrieved in

the least intrusive manner

possible, e.g., all quarries will be

restored to an appearance similar

to that which existed prior to

excavation.

Natural resources will be

maintained in their natural

conditions and natural processes

would dominate. 

All cultural resources will be

preserved and protected. 

Tolerance for impacts relating to

visitor use will be extremely low.

Paleontological resources will be

maintained and/or retrieved in

the least intrusive manner

possible while undertaking

necessary transportation-related

improvements. These activities

will be coordinated with

paleontological staff.

Natural resources could be highly

modified to ensure safe and

efficient transportation for the

public.

All cultural resources will be

preserved and protected to the

greatest extent possible.

Tolerance for impacts relating to

the provision of a safe

transportation network will be

high.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 51
Management

Zone

Resource

Conditions

Visitor

Experience 

Facilities

OPERATIONS

The purpose of the

operations zone is to

support the day-to-day

management and

administration of the

monument. Efficiency,

safety, and

convenience are

important elements of

all facilities and

activities in this zone.

These areas are

generally closed to the

public. 

There generally will be

no visitor use in this

zone but the area will

be heavily used by

monument staff,

volunteers, partners,

and others engaged in

monument operations

and administration. 

This zone might

contain concentrated

facilities. Examples of

administration facilities

include headquarters,

maintenance areas,

staff housing,

maintenance roads,

and other facilities

necessary for the

management of the

monument.

Paleontological resources will be

maintained and/or retrieved in

the least intrusive manner

possible while undertaking

necessary operational activities.

These activities will be

coordinated with paleontology

staff.

Natural resources may be highly

modified in this heavily used and

developed area. Times of high

noise levels during the operation

of equipment are to be

expected. Facility development

would occur in areas previously

disturbed or in areas of low

natural resource sensitivity. 

All cultural resources will be

preserved and protected to the

greatest extent possible.

Cultural resources might be

rehabilitated for adaptive uses,

which would be preferable to

new construction. Facility

development would occur in

areas previously disturbed or in

areas of low cultural resource

potential.

Tolerance for natural resource

impacts will be higher than in

other zones.

52 The Plan
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 53

MANAGEMENT OF SPECIFIC AREAS

CLARNO UNIT

Mammal Quarry

Working with interested partners, monument

managers will open the mammal quarry for

research and interpretation. Testing will be

conducted with the intent of excavating

portions of the mammal quarry that show

significant fossil deposits. Analyses will be

conducted to ascertain the abundance,

distribution, and orientation of the

fossiliferous sediments proximal to the

quarry and to perform excavations to test

paleoecological hypotheses, taphonomic

explanations, and paleoclimatic models. A

small awning will be constructed to protect

paleontological resources and allow public

visitation, and secure perimeter fencing

would be installed. The focus will be on a

seasonal operation that provides

opportunities to advance research goals

alongside public viewing and interpretation.

Geo-Loop Trail

A new gravel parking area, accommodating

approximately eight cars and two RVs, and a

trailhead will be constructed immediately

east of the Hancock Field Station. Existing

human-created unofficial trails will be

formalized in order to provide a loop trail,

approximately 4 miles in length, that accesses

the Hancock Tree, the Clarno Nut Beds, and

the mammal quarry. If possible, that portion

of the trail that goes from the new trailhead

to the Hancock Tree (approximately 0.4

miles) will be made accessible for people with

disabilities, constructed of a combination of

asphalt and a boardwalk. Because this trail

will be designed to receive higher levels of

use, it would be included in a pedestrian

management zone.

Mimulus Trail

This existing, human-created unofficial trail,

approximately 2 miles long, will be

formalized. The official trail will extend

southwest of the Hancock Field Station, run

across the top of the palisades to the ridge

between Indian and Hancock canyons, and

then connect with a trail between the ridges

(see figure 2: Clarno Unit map). Although

most of the trail is already present,

approximately 0.5 mile of new trail will need

to be constructed. The Mimulus Trail will be

designed for low to moderate use levels,

which is consistent in character with the

surrounding backcountry zone.

Stegamonster Trail

This existing human-created unofficial trail

will be formalized. This trail is about 2 miles

long, and runs from just south of the

Hancock Field Station to the east and up to

the ridge between Indian and Hancock

canyons. The Stegamonster Trail will be

designed for low to moderate use levels,

which is consistent in character with the

surrounding backcountry zone.

Indian Canyon

No changes will occur regarding the

management of Indian Canyon. Visitors will

continue to be allowed to hike in the area so

long as they were not on exposed paleosols.

Visitor Contact Station/Office

Rangers will continue to operate out of the

existing facility located adjacent to State

Highway 218.

Other Actions

All undesignated human-created trails will be

removed and the areas restored.

PAINTED HILLS UNIT

Painted Hills Overlook

The overlook will be redesigned to improve

visitor access and overall aesthetics. It will

accommodate parking for the Carroll Rim

Trail and a new shade structure will be added

for visitor comfort.

Road to Painted Cove

The National Park Service will work with

Wheeler County to seek funding to pave the

county-owned and county-maintained road

to Painted Cove. If funds were obtained, the

NPS managers will work with the county to

incorporate a design that would ensure that

the rural character of the area is retained.

NPS managers will encourage the county to

adopt NPS road standards and use alternative

surfacing treatments.
54 The Plan

Painted Hills Picnic Area

The picnic area will be maintained in its

present condition, which includes a

maintained turf grass area along with a small

arboretum. New shade structures will be

added for visitor comfort.

Leaf Hill Trail

The Leaf Hill Trail will be maintained in its

present condition.

Bridge Creek Restoration

Efforts will continue on NPS lands to remove

invasive plants and to plant native trees to

restore the riparian area to a more “natural”

landscape. In addition, NPS managers will

seek a cooperative agreement to partner with

the adjacent landowner on a collaborative

creek restoration effort. If an agreement were

obtained, NPS managers will work with the

landowner to remove invasive plants and to

plant native trees on their side of the creek.

SHEEP ROCK UNIT

Cant Ranch

The James Cant Ranch Historic District will

continue to be managed to maintain its

cultural landscape and features. As part of the

cultural landscape, the four fields will

continue to be leased for hay production,

with flood irrigation, sprinkler irrigation, and

traditional and modern agricultural practices

being employed. However, management will

focus on improvements in sustainability of

the agricultural operation, such as improving

water conservation through land leveling

and/or sprinkler installation. The National

Park Service will continue to irrigate the

fields under its existing water rights. The

focus for the Cant Ranch barn will continue

to be on preservation, including some

rehabilitation.

Public restrooms will be available inside the

Cant Ranch house, accessible during normal

monument business hours.

Thomas Condon Paleontology Center

The paleontology center will continue to

serve as a primary visitor contact/interpretive

focal point for the monument. No new

services or facilities will be provided.

NPS managers also will work with the

Oregon Department of Transportation to

explore possible safety measures or options

for visitors to safely cross State Highway 19 to

access Cant Ranch. These measures could

include lowering speed limits or putting in a

crosswalk. 

John Day River

National Park Service managers will continue

to focus their efforts on vegetation

management and plantings along the riparian

area. In addition, NPS managers will take

actions to restore the river’s hydrologic and

riparian function in the monument. Dikes

and rock barbs will be removed when the

banks are stabilized either through the

reestablishment of riparian vegetation or

other factors.

Butler Basin

No changes will occur regarding the

management of Butler Basin, above the

paleontology center. Visitors will continue to

be allowed to hike in the area so long as they

were not on exposed paleosols.

Research Natural Area

One research natural area exists in the

monument in the Sheep Rock Unit. The

Sheep Rock Research Natural Area was

nominated in 1985 and includes

approximately 920 acres. It is composed of

two geographically separated sites: the Rock

Creek and Waterspout Gulch sites. The Rock

Creek site includes 440 acres and the

Waterspout Gulch site includes 480 acres.

Both of these sites are in steep, rugged

topography, are relatively inaccessible, and

are unaffected by past livestock grazing. The

research natural area will continue to be

managed to protect its pristine qualities. The

management zoning is compatible with this

special designation.
Thomas Condon Paleontology Center.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 55
56 The Plan
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 57
58 The Plan
USER CAPACITY

The National Park Service defines user

capacity as the type and level of visitor that

can be accommodated while sustaining the

quality of resources and visitor opportunities

consistent with the purposes of the National

Park Service unit. It is not necessarily a set of

numbers or limits, but rather a process

involving monitoring, evaluation, actions

(managing visitor use), and adjustments to

ensure a park unit’s values are protected.

With any use on public lands comes some

level of impact that must be accepted.

Therefore, it is the responsibility of the

National Park Service to decide what level of

impact is acceptable and what actions are

needed to keep impacts within acceptable

limits. Instead of soley tracking and

controlling user numbers, NPS staff manages

the levels, types, and patterns of visitor use

and other public uses as needed to manage

the condition of the resources and quality of

the visitor experience.

Five key elements are involved in user 

capacity decision making: 

• resource and visitor experience

• desired conditions as described in the

management zones

• indicators and standards

• monitoring

• management strategies

User capacity decision making is a

continuous process; decisions are adjusted

based on monitoring the indicators and

standards. Management actions are taken to

minimize impacts when needed. The

indicators and standards included in this

management plan would generally not

change in the future. However, as monitoring

of the monument’s conditions continues,

managers may decide to modify, add, or

delete indicators if better ways are found to

measure important changes in resource and

social conditions. The results of the

monument’s monitoring efforts, related

visitor use management actions, and any

changes to the monument’s indicators and

standards will be available for public review.

INDICATORS AND STANDARDS 

This management plan includes identification

of user capacity indicators and standards.

Table 3 includes the indicators, standards,

related monitoring, and potential future

management strategies allocated by

management zone that will be implemented

as result of this planning effort. These

indicators and standards help translate the

broader qualitative descriptions of desired

conditions into measurable conditions. 

Measurable indicators have been selected for

monitoring key aspects of visitor experiences

and resources at John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument. Standards that

represent the points where visitor experience

and resource conditions become

unacceptable in each zone were then

assigned based on desired conditions. The

indicators will be monitored in each zone,

and when necessary, management actions

will be taken to ensure that visitor use and

resource impacts remain within the

established standards.

Two sets of indicators and standards were

selected as measures of visitor use effects at

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument:

unofficial trails and visitor encounters. The

monument staff considered other potential

resource indicators that will identify visitor

use impacts of concern, but many were

eliminated because they were not easy to

monitor or did not provide adequate

information on the issue of concern. The

presence of human-created (unofficial) trails

was selected as an indicator to measure the

increase in vegetation and soil disturbance

that may be occurring outside of the

monument’s designated facilities. This

indicator was considered to be feasible

because it would be fairly easy to monitor

and would provide useful information about

important resource impacts. These humancreated trails increase the total footprint of

disturbed lands in the monument and may

adversely affect sensitive wildlife habitats and

important archaeological and paleontological

resources.

The monument staff also considered several

potential social or visitor experience

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 59
60 The Plan

indicators that would measure how visitor

use levels, types, and behaviors were affecting

other visitors. The social indicator selected

relates to visitor encounter rates on

designated (official) trails. In many studies

conducted in the national park system and

other areas, this indicator has been

demonstrated to be an important indicator of

crowding and associated impacts on the

visitor experience, especially in backcountry

settings (see Roggenbuck, Williams and

Watson 1993, Manning 1999). 

The standards selected for each indicator

were based on best professional management

judgment that was informed by the general

management plan’s desired conditions, the

monument’s baseline conditions for each

indicator, and relevant monument-specific

and national research studies.

MONITORING

The monument staff will continue general

monitoring of use levels and patterns and will

conduct periodic visitor surveys of visitor

characteristics, expectations, evaluations, and

preferences. In addition, the monument staff

will begin monitoring the user capacity

indicators identified in the zone descriptions.

The rigor of monitoring the indicators (e.g.,

frequency of monitoring cycles, amount of

geographic area monitored) may vary

considerably depending on how close

existing conditions are to the standards. If the

existing conditions are well below the

standard, the rigor of monitoring may be less

than if the existing conditions are close to or

trending towards the standards.

In addition, the initial phases of monitoring

for the indicators and standards defined

above will help the NPS staff identify if any

revisions are needed. The initial testing of the

indicators and standards will determine if the

indicators are accurately measuring the

conditions of concern. Monument staff may

decide to modify the indicators or standards

and revise the monitoring program if more

effective and efficient methods are found to

measure changes caused by public use. Most

of these changes should be made within the

first several years of initiating monitoring.

This iterative learning and refining process is

the strength of this approach to managing

user capacity—it can be adapted and

improved as knowledge grows.

After this initial testing period of monitoring

indicators and standards, adjustments should

not occur unless there is a compelling reason.

Monument staff need to be cautious of

adjusting indicators and standards to a point

where the indicators and standards are no

longer consistent with the desired conditions

for the zone. If desired conditions and,

subsequently, indicators and standards need

to be changed, these decisions may be subject

to additional compliance. 

Monument staff will monitor social and

resource indicators, evaluate current

conditions against standards, and take

appropriate steps to ensure the monument’s

user capacity is not exceeded. See table 3 for

the user capacity indicators, standards, and

management and monitoring strategies that

will be followed under the plan.

If use levels and patterns change substantially,

the monument staff may need to initiate

additional monitoring of new indicators to

ensure that desired conditions are

maintained. Some of the potential future user

capacity indicators may relate to the topics of

vegetation trampling along the John Day

River and near pictograph sites, trail

condition, and number of people at one time

at the monument’s major attractions. 

The selection of any new indicators and

standards for monitoring purposes, changes

to the indicators and standards identified in

this general management plan, or the

implementation of any management actions

that affect use will comply with NEPA

regulations, the National Historic

Preservation Act, and other laws, regulations, 

and policies as needed. The NPS staff will

also inform the public of progress and

proposed revisions to indicators and

standards through regular reporting on the

user capacity program.
User Capacity

Indicators

User Capacity

Standards

Related

Monitoring

Strategies 

Potential Management

Strategies

Cultural

Zone

Frontcountry

Zone 

Pedestrian

Zone

Backcountry

Zone

Number of

people

encountered per

hour on

designated

(official) trails

N/A – User

capacity

managed by

facility capacities

1. Number of

human-created

(unofficial trails

per mile

branching from a

designated

(official) trail

2. Number of

people

encountered per

hour on

designated

(official) trails

1. Linear feet of

human-created

(unofficial) trails

per acre

No more than 80

people

encountered per

hour

N/A – User

capacity

managed by

facility capacities

1. No more than

four humancreated

(unofficial) trails

per mile

branching from a

designated

(official) trail

2. No more than

60 people

encountered per

hour

1. No more than

5 linear feet of

human-created

(unofficial) trails

per acre

Observations of

encounter rates

as part of regular

patrols;

systematic

observations will

be done, if

needed, as a

result of an

increasing trend

in encounter

rates

Sufficiency of

facility capacities

will continue to

be monitored

1. Observations

of human-created

trails as part of

regular patrols;

periodic mapping

of human-created

trails

2. Observations

of encounter

rates as part of

regular patrols;

systematic

observations will

be done, if

needed, as a

result of an

increasing trend

in encounter

rates

1. Observations

of human-created

trails as part of

regular patrols;

periodic mapping

of human-created

trails

Education (e.g., encourage

voluntary redistribution of

use); site management (e.g.,

resize parking lot/access

points, alter trail

opportunities)

Future planning will address

conflicts between facility

capacity deficiencies and

maintaining desired resource

conditions and visitor

experiences

1. Education (e.g., educate

regarding resource sensitivity

and need for appropriate

behaviors); site management

(e.g., place physical barriers

along the trails, close areas);

enforcement (e.g., provide

signs, increase law enforcement presence, impose

sanctions)

2. Education (e.g., encourage

voluntary redistribution of

use); site management (e.g.,

resize parking lot/access

points, alter trail

opportunities); reallocation of

use (e.g., institute a

permitting or reservation

system); regulations (e.g.,

limit group sizes, limit length

of stay) 

1. Education (e.g., educate

regarding resource sensitivity

and need for appropriate

behaviors); site management

(e.g., place physical barriers

along trails, close areas); enforcement (e.g., provide

signs, increase law

enforcement presence,

impose sanctions)

Table 3: Summary of User Capacity Indicators, Standards, and Strategies for

Monitoring and Management

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 61
Backcountry

Zone

(continued)

Primitive

Zone

Transportation

Corridor

Operations

Zone

2. Number of

people

encountered per

hour on

designated

(official) trails 

1. Linear feet of

human-created

(unofficial) trails

per acre

2. Number of

groups seen per

day (6 a.m. to 9

p.m.) within the

primitive zone 

2. No more than

40 people

encountered per

hour

1. No more than

1 linear foot of

human-created

(unofficial) trails

per acre 

2. No more than

three groups seen

per day in the

zone

2. Observations

of encounter

rates as part of

regular patrols;

systematic

observations will

be done, if

needed, as a

result of an

increasing trend

in encounter

rates

1. Observations

of human-created

trails as part of

regular patrols;

periodic mapping

of human-created

trails

2. Observations

of encounter

rates as part of

regular patrols;

systematic

observations will

be done, if

needed, as a

result of an

increasing trend

in encounter

rates

2. Education (e.g., encourage

voluntary redistribution of

use); site management (e.g.,

resize parking lot/access

points, alter trail

opportunities); reallocation of

use (e.g., institute a

permitting or reservation

system); regulations (e.g.,

limit group sizes, limit length

of stay)

1. Education (e.g., educate

regarding resource sensitivity

and need for appropriate

behaviors); site management

(e.g., close areas);

enforcement (e.g., provide

signs about appropriate

behaviors, increase law

enforcement presence,

impose sanctions)

2. Education (e.g., encourage

voluntary redistribution of

use); reallocation of use (e.g.,

institute a permitting or

reservation system);

regulations (e.g., limit length

of stay)

N/A – The National Park Service does not have management authority over the county

and state road corridors, so no user capacity indicators and standards are identified

N/A - Minimal public use occurs in this zone, so no user capacity indicators and standards

are necessary

User Capacity

Indicators

User Capacity

Standards

Related

Monitoring

Strategies 

Potential Management

Strategies

62 The Plan
ESTIMATED COSTS

Cost estimates for the plan are identified

below in table 4. The cost estimates shown

here, in 2006 dollars, are not for budgetary

purposes; they are intended to show only a

very general estimate. The actual costs to the

federal government could vary depending on

various factors such as the final design of

each facility, opportunities for partnerships,

and future economic conditions. Note that

these costs do not include the costs for any

additional plans or studies. 

The implementation of the plan will depend

on future funding. The approval of this plan

does not guarantee that the funding and

staffing needed to implement the plan will be

forthcoming. Full implementation of the

actions in this plan could be many years in

the future.

Development

This plan includes the improvements to

facilities and structures described previously.

The estimated development cost of these

improvements in 2006 dollars is

approximately $800,000.

Staff and Operations

To achieve this plan the monument needs to

expand its current staffing levels of 22 fulltime equivalent staff (FTEs) by 6.5 for

research, resource protection, and

interpretation. (One FTE is one person

working 40 hours per week for one year, or

the equivalent.) The monument’s current

operating budget of $2.0 million/year needs

to be increased by approximately $650,000 to

fund these positions. The total cost to operate

the monument according to this plan is about

$2.8 million per year (in 2006 dollars).

Mammal quarry facility....................................................................

Geo-Loop Trail and parking area...................................................

Formalize Mimulus & Stegamonster trails........................................

Redesign Painted Hills Overlook.......................................

Shade structure at Painted Hills picnic area.....................................

Social trail closure and restoration...................................................

TOTAL CAPITAL COSTS (rounded)...............................................

Table 4: Estimated Costs

One-time Capital Costs

Clarno Unit

Painted Hills Unit

Monument-wide

Bridge Creek restoration.(staffing & materials)..........................

John Day River restoration.(staffing & materials).......................

6.5 FTE...................................................................................

ADDITIONAL TOTAL RECURRING COSTS (rounded)..........

Recurring Costs

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 63

$30,200/year

$91,000/year

$650,000/year

$771,000/year

$45,500

$528,200

$51,680

(if paved) $88,400

$30,000

$25,000

$770,000
Hancock Tree, Clarno Unit.

64 The Plan
OTHER ELEMENTS OF THE PLAN

BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENTS

The National Park and Recreation Act of

1978 requires general management plans to

address whether boundary modifications

should be made to park units. This plan

proposes the addition of an area adjacent to

the Sheep Rock Unit that would require a

boundary adjustment (See also appendix C

for an analysis of the boundary adjustment

according to NPS land protection criteria.)

The National Park Service will pursue a land

exchange between an adjacent private

landowner and the Bureau of Land

Management around Cathedral Rock in the

Sheep Rock Unit. This land exchange,

involving up to 1,000 acres, would protect a

key geologic feature and up to 100 acres of

important riparian habitat along the John Day

River.

Although the outcome of the boundary

adjustment is contingent on agreements with

other outside parties, this plan does not

prohibit small additions, such as land for

administrative use, that may be identified in

the future by other land planning processes.

PARTNERSHIPS, PROGRAMS, AND

ACTIVITIES

The National Park Service will continue its

partnership with the Bureau of Land

Management, U.S. Forest Service, and the

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to share

resources on paleontology and archaeology

in the John Day Basin. An interagency

agreement signed by the three agencies in

2006, allows the monument to provide

staffing and expertise on paleontological

resource needs in the John Day Basin while

the Bureau of Land Management provides

staffing and expertise on archeological

resource needs in the monument. 

Furthermore, the agreement allows NPS staff

to conduct paleontological inventories on

other agencies’ lands in the John Day Basin

and to store fossils from those lands in the

monument’s repository. The National Park

Service and Bureau of Land Management

will continue to share and jointly fund a full

time law enforcement ranger.

The monument will continue to work with

museums and universities around the world

on paleontological research and curation

methods. Planning assistance will be sought

from such sources for opening the Mammal

Quarry and for programming assistance for

developing and operating interpretive

activities on site.

The monument staff will continue its longstanding partnership with the Oregon

Museum of Science and Industry through its

Hancock Field Station located in the

monument. Monument staff will continue to

work with Hancock staff on interpretive

programs and special projects in the Clarno

Unit. In particular, the monument staff will

seek to engage Hancock staff and volunteers

in eliminating human-created unofficial trails

and restoring the areas to natural conditions.

As noted above, in the Painted Hills Unit

monument staff will seek to collaborate with

the adjacent landowner on a comprehensive

restoration effort that encompasses both

sides of Bridge Creek. In addition, NPS staff

will work with Wheeler County to obtain

funding to pave the road to Painted Cove

using a design approach that would maintain

the rural character of the area. 

FUTURE STUDIES AND IMPLEMENTATION

PLANS NEEDED

Other more detailed studies and plans are

needed before specific actions included in

this plan can be implemented.

As required, additional environmental

compliance (National Environmental Policy

Act, National Historic Preservation Act, and

other relevant laws and policies) and public

involvement will be conducted. These

additional studies include the following:

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 65
• Routinely monitoring and stabilizing

archeological sites.

• Monitoring cultural landscapes and historic

structures to protect, preserve, and research

them.

• Ground distrubing activities for new trails,

the formalization of existing social trails, for

parking lot development, and for visitor

facilities like new shade structures.

• If eligible for National Register of Historic

Places, discovery of archeological sites that

cannot be avoided via survey of new trails

or formalization of extisting trails.

These items are programmatically excluded

from future Section 106 review and SHPO

consultation in accordance with the 1995

Programmatic Agreement among the

National Park Service, the Advisory Council on

Historic Preservation and the National

Conference of State Historic Preservation

Officers.

Future Section 106 review and SHPO 

consultation would likely be necessary and

required before construction at the project

implementation planning or design stages.

Action Compliance Requirement

• an implementation plan for opening the

mammal quarry to research and

interpretation

• a long-range interpretation plan that

focuses on conveying the significance of

the monument’s fundamental resources

and values through the primary

interpretive themes

• a historic preservation and use plan for

the Cant Ranch barn and outbuildings

• a study/plan to determine the most

appropriate irrigation techniques to be

used at the Cant Ranch that promote

water conservation and are compatible

with the property’s historic character

• a land protection plan that focuses on

evaluating important viewsheds and other

significant features that affect the integrity

of the monument’s fundamental resources

and values

• a river recreation management plan

(should this activity increase to a level that

warrants such planning) 

• a resource stewardship strategy that

provides comprehensive, long-range

direction for natural and cultural resource

management

• a trails management plan that sets forth

direction for the development and

maintenance of official trails and for

restoration of unofficial, human-created

trails in the monument 

• an accessibility study that focuses on

barriers to monument programs and

facilities, which would provide the basis

for developing a strategy to improve

accessibility for people with disabilities

FUTURE COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS

The following table lists some of the specific

future compliance requirements for this plan.

Included are the NPS determinations of how

those individual requirements relate to the

1995 programmatic agreement in relation to

cultural resources.

Table 5: Future Compliance Required for Implementation of Specific Actions

66 The Plan
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 67

Appendixes and Preparers and Consultants

Finding of No Significant Impact

Environmental Assessment

General Management Plan

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Oregon

The National Park Service (NPS) has prepared a general management plan /

environmental assessment (GMP/EA) for John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument, Oregon. John Day Fossil Beds National Monument was authorized by

an act of Congress on October 26, 1974 (Public Law 94-486). The national

monument encompasses 14,000 acres in the John Day River valley. Congress

established the national monument to preserve, and provide for the scientific and

public understanding of the paleontological resources of the John Day region, and

the natural, scenic, and cultural resources within the boundaries of the national

monument. 

The last comprehensive management plan for John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument was completed in 1979. Much has changed since then, including the

construction of new facilities and changes in visitor use patterns. Also, resource

conditions continue to change and are affected by visitation. Each of these changes

has implications for how visitors access and use John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument, how the existing facilities support these uses, how resources are

managed, and how the National Park Service manages its operations. 

A new plan is needed to:

• provide a realistic vision for the monument’s future, setting a direction for

the monument that considers the environmental as well as the financial

impact of proposed facilities and programs

• establish a common management direction for all monument divisions and

units

• clearly define resource conditions and visitor uses and experiences to be

achieved in the monument

• ensure that this foundation for decision making has been developed in

consultation with interested stakeholders and adopted by the NPS

leadership after an adequate analysis of the benefits, environmental impacts,

and economic costs of alternative courses of action

National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

APPENDIX A: FONSI
Three alternatives were identified for the management of John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument. The alternatives, which were based on the monument’s purpose,

significance, and special mandates, present different ways to manage resources and

visitor use, and improve facilities and infrastructure at John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument. Concerns identified during scoping and evaluated in the environmental

assessment included: trail expansion and management; spread of nonnative species;

restoration of riparian zones; management of the agricultural fields at the Cant Ranch;

use and types of visitor facilities; and user capacity of the area.

Selected Alternative

Alternative B is the National Park Service’s selected alternative for implementation and

there have been no changes in the alternative as identified and analyzed in the

environmental assessment. The primary focus of this alternative will be on enhancing

visitor experience opportunities and experiences while protecting natural and cultural

resources. Natural resources will be improved through site restoration, while visitor

opportunities will be increased with new trails and other limited new facilities.

Compared to the other alternatives considered, this alternative will provide a higher

level of protection to natural landscapes and cultural resources. Research, education,

and interpretive activities concerning the environment, paleontology, and geology will

be increased. The alternative will continue to offer a diversity of opportunities for visitor

experiences. New facilities will be constructed in previously developed areas where

possible. Disturbance to sensitive areas, such as rare species habitat and archeological

sites, will also be avoided or mitigated whenever possible.

Specific actions under the selected alternative will include the following:

Clarno Unit

• The Mammal Quarry will be opened for research and interpretation.

• The Geo-Loop will be formalized and designated as an official trail with a new

parking area developed just east of the Hancock Field Station.

• The Mimulus and Stegamonster trails will be formalized and designated as

official trails.

Painted Hills Unit

• The Painted Hills Overlook will be redesigned to improve visitor access and

aesthetics, and to accommodate parking for the Carroll Rim Trailhead. New

shade structures will be added to the overlook.

• The NPS staff will work with Wheeler County to pursue paving of the road to

Painted Cove that meets NPS standards and incorporates a design approach that

preserves the rural character of the area.

• The existing picnic area and arboretum will continue to be maintained and

enhanced by adding new shade structures.

• The Leaf Hill Trail will continue to be maintained.

• Bridge Creek will continue to be restored by planting trees and removing invasive

vegetation and by seeking a cooperative agreement with the adjacent landowner

for expanded restoration.

68 Appendix A
Sheep Rock Unit

• The Cant Ranch agricultural fields will be maintained, and the sustainability of

agricultural operations will be improved by focusing on actions such as leveling

land and installing sprinklers.

• The John Day River will continue to be restored by planting trees and removing

invasive vegetation, and by removing dikes and rock barbs to improve hydrologic

functions.

• The National Park Service will seek to protect about 100 acres around Cathedral

Rock by pursuing a boundary adjustment and land exchange or purchase.

Other Alternatives

Two other alternatives were considered for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.

Alternative A (no action) consists of the continuation of existing monument

management and trends, and serves as the basis for evaluating the other alternatives.

Under alternative A the National Park Service would have continued to manage John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument as it has since the approval of the 1979 General

Management Plan, which envisioned the construction of the now existing

paleomuseum-visitor center. There would have been no other major change in the

management of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument under this alternative. All

facilities and resource programs would have continued as they have - no major new

facilities would have been built.

Management under alternative C would have focused on further expanding visitor

opportunities with additional visitor facilities and trails, and improving natural

resources through site restoration. Of the alternatives considered, alternative C would

have provided the highest level of restoration of natural landscapes but would have

affected existing visitor opportunities and certain cultural landscapes. The alternative

would have provided more facilities and a higher level of developed visitor

opportunities. 

Mitigative Measures

Congress charged the National Park Service with managing the lands under its

stewardship “...in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for

the enjoyment of future generations” (NPS Organic Act, 16 USC 1). As a result, NPS

staff routinely evaluates and implements mitigation whenever conditions occur that

could adversely affect the sustainability of national park system resources.

To ensure that implementation of the alternative protects unimpaired natural and

cultural resources and the quality of the visitor experience, a consistent set of mitigation

measures will be applied to actions proposed in this plan. The National Park Service will

prepare appropriate environmental review (i.e., those required by the National

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), and

other relevant legislation) for these future actions. As part of the environmental review,

the National Park Service will avoid, minimize, and mitigate adverse impacts when

practicable. The implementation of a compliance-monitoring program will be within the

parameters of NEPA and NHPA compliance documents, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 69
Section 404 permits, etc. Responsibility and accountability for mitigation will be that of

the park management. The compliance-monitoring program will oversee these

mitigation measures and will include reporting and post completion evaluation

protocols.

The following mitigation measures and best management practices will be applied to

avoid or minimize potential impacts from implementation of the alternative.

Natural Resources

General

• John Day Fossil Beds National Monument’s resources, including air, water, soils,

vegetation, and wildlife, will be periodically inventoried and monitored to

provide information needed to avoid or minimize impacts of future

development. Any museum collections generated by such activities will be

managed according to NPS policies.

• Whenever possible, new facilities will be built in previously disturbed areas or in

carefully selected sites with as small a construction footprint as possible. During

design and construction periods, NPS natural resource staff will identify areas to

be avoided.

• Fencing or other means will be used to protect sensitive resources adjacent to

construction areas.

• Construction activities will be monitored by resource specialists as needed.

Construction materials will be kept in work areas, especially if the construction

takes place near streams, springs, natural drainages, or other water bodies.

• Visitors will be informed of the importance of protecting the monument’s natural

resources (including paleontological resources) and leaving these undisturbed

for the enjoyment of future generations.

Air Quality

• A dust abatement program will be implemented. Standard dust abatement

measures could include watering or otherwise stabilizing soils, covering haul

trucks, employing speed limits on unpaved roads, minimizing vegetation

clearing, and revegetating after construction.

Soils 

• New facilities will be built on soils suitable for development. Soil erosion will be

minimized by limiting the time soil is left exposed and by applying other erosioncontrol measures such as erosion matting, silt fencing, and sedimentation basins

in construction areas to reduce erosion, surface scouring, and discharge to water

bodies. Once work is completed, construction areas will be revegetated with

native plants in a timely period.

• To minimize soil erosion on new trails, best management practices for trail

construction will be used. Examples of best management practices could include

installing water bars, check dams and retaining walls; contouring to avoid

erosion; and minimizing soil disturbance.

70 Appendix A
Paleontological Resources

• Site-specific surveys will be undertaken before any ground disturbance occurs in

areas believed likely to contain fossils. If important paleontological resources

were identified, the National Park Service will attempt to avoid, relocate, or

otherwise mitigate impacts from the actions being taken. Any specimens found

and collected during construction activities will be managed according to NPS

museum collection policies.

• Efforts will be undertaken to inform and educate visitors, students, teachers, and

the public about the monument’s paleontological resources, the reasons for

protecting these resources, and the laws regarding the collection of fossils from

NPS lands.

Water Resources 

• To prevent water pollution during construction, erosion control measures will be

used, discharges to water bodies will be minimized, and construction equipment

will be regularly inspected for leaks of petroleum and other chemicals.

• Best management practices, such as the use of silt fences, will be followed to

ensure that construction-related effects are minimal and to prevent long-term

impacts on water quality, wetlands, and aquatic species.

• Caution will be exercised to protect water resources from activities with the

potential to damage water resources, including damage caused by construction

equipment, erosion, and siltation. Measures will be taken to keep fill material

from escaping work areas, especially near streams, springs, natural drainages, and

wetlands.

• For new facilities, and to the extent practicable for existing facilities, stormwater

management measures will be implemented to reduce nonpoint source pollution

discharge from parking lots and other impervious surfaces. Such actions could

include use of oil/sediment separators, street sweeping, infiltration beds,

permeable surfaces, and vegetated or natural filters to trap or filter stormwater

runoff.

• The monument’s spill prevention and pollution control program for hazardous

materials will be followed and updated on a regular basis. Standard measures

could include procedures for hazardous materials storage and handling, spill

containment, cleanup, and reporting; and limitation of refueling and other

hazardous activities in upland/nonsensitive sites.

Vegetation

• Areas used by visitors (e.g., trails) will be monitored for signs of native vegetation

disturbance. Public education, revegetation of disturbed areas with native plants,

erosion control measures, and barriers will be used to control potential impacts

on plants from trail erosion or social trailing.

• Proposed sites for new trails and other facilities will be surveyed for sensitive

species before construction. If sensitive species are present, new developments

will be relocated to avoid impacts.

• Revegetation plans will be developed for disturbed areas. Revegetation plans

should specify such features as seed/plant source, seed/plant mixes, soil

preparation, fertilizers, and mulching. Salvage vegetation, rather than new

planting or seeding, will be used to any extent possible. To maintain genetic

integrity, native plants that grow in the project area or the region will be used in

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 71
restoration efforts, whenever possible. Use of nonnative species or genetic

materials will be considered only where deemed necessary to maintain a cultural

landscape or to prevent severe resource damage, and will be approved by the

monument’s natural resource specialist. Restoration activities will be instituted

immediately after construction is completed. Monitoring will occur to ensure

that revegetation was successful, plantings were maintained, and unsuccessful

plant materials were replaced.

Nonnative Plant Species

• Special attention will be devoted to preventing the spread of noxious weeds and

other nonnative plants. Standard measures could include the following elements:

ensure construction-related equipment arrives on-site free of mud or seedbearing material, certify all seeds and straw material as weed-free, identify areas

of noxious weeds before construction, treat noxious weeds or noxious weed

topsoil before construction (e.g., topsoil segregation, storage, herbicide

treatment), and revegetate with appropriate native species.

Wildlife

• To the extent possible, new or rehabilitated facilities will be sited to avoid

sensitive wildlife habitats, including feeding and resting areas, major travel

corridors, nesting areas, and other sensitive habitats.

• Construction activities will be timed to avoid sensitive periods, such as nesting or

spawning seasons. Ongoing visitor use and NPS operational activities could be

restricted if their potential level of damage or disturbance warranted doing so.

Measures will be taken to reduce the potential for wildlife to get food from

humans. Wildlife-proof garbage containers will be required in developed areas

(including visitor centers, picnic areas, trails, and interpretive waysides). Signs

will continue to educate visitors about the need to refrain from feeding wildlife.

• Other visitor impacts on wildlife will be addressed through such techniques as

visitor education programs, restrictions on visitor activities, and ranger patrols.

Threatened and Endangered Species and Species of Concern

Conservation measures will occur during normal operations as well as before, during,

and after construction to minimize long-term, immediate impacts on rare species, and

threatened and endangered species if they are identified in the monument. These

measures will vary by specific project and the affected area of John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument. Many of the measures listed above for vegetation and wildlife will

also benefit rare, threatened, and endangered species by helping to preserve habitat.

Conservation measures specific to rare, threatened, and endangered species will include

the following actions:

• Surveys will be conducted for special status species, including rare, threatened,

and endangered species, before deciding to take any action that might cause

harm. In consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine

Fisheries Service, and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, appropriate

measures will be taken to protect any sensitive species whether identified

through surveys or presumed to occur.

• If breeding or nesting areas for threatened and endangered species were

observed in the monument, these areas will be protected from human

disturbance.

72 Appendix A
• New facilities and management actions will be located and designed to avoid

adverse effects on rare, threatened, and endangered species. If avoidance of

adverse effects on rare, threatened, and endangered species is infeasible,

appropriate conservation measures will be taken in consultation with the

appropriate resource agencies.

• Restoration or monitoring plans will be developed as warranted. Plans should

include methods for implementation, performance standards, monitoring

criteria, and adaptive management techniques.

• Measures will be taken to reduce adverse effects of nonnative plants and wildlife

on rare, threatened, and endangered species.

Noise Abatement

• Standard noise abatement measures will be followed during construction

periods. Standard noise abatement measures could include the following

elements: a schedule that minimizes impacts on adjacent noise-sensitive

resources, the use of the best available noise control techniques wherever

feasible, the use of hydraulically or electrically powered impact tools when

feasible, and the location of stationary noise sources as far from sensitive

resources as possible.

• Facilities will be located and designed to minimize objectionable noise.

Scenic Resources

Mitigation measures are designed to minimize visual intrusions. These measures could

include the following:

• Where appropriate, facilities such as boardwalks and fences will be used to route

people away from sensitive natural and cultural resources while still permitting

access to important viewpoints.

• Facilities will be designed, sited, and constructed to avoid or minimize visual

intrusion into the natural environment or landscape.

• Vegetative screening will be provided, where appropriate.

Cultural Resources

All projects with the potential to affect historic properties will be carried out in

compliance with Section 106 of NHPA to ensure that the effects are adequately

addressed. All reasonable measures will be taken to avoid, minimize, or mitigate adverse

effects in consultation with the Oregon State Historic Preservation Officer and, as

necessary, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and other concerned parties,

including American Indian tribes. In addition to adhering to the legal and policy

requirements for cultural resources protection and preservation, the National Park

Service will also undertake the following measures as required to further protect or

mitigate resources potentially at risk of disturbance because of implementing proposed

actions:

• All areas selected for construction will be surveyed to ensure that cultural

resources (i.e., archeological, historic, ethnographic, and cultural landscape

resources) in the area of potential effects are adequately identified and protected

by avoidance or, if necessary, mitigation. 

• Compliance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of

1990 (NAGPRA) will apply in the unlikely event that human remains believed to

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 73
be Native American would be discovered inadvertently during construction.

Prompt notification and consultation with the tribes traditionally associated with

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument will occur in accordance with

NAGPRA. If such human remains were believed to be non-Indian, standard

reporting procedures to the proper authorities will be followed, as will all

applicable federal, state, and local laws.

• Archeological documentation will be done in accordance with the Secretary of

the Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation.

• Should construction unearth previously unknown archeological resources, work

will stop in the area of discovery until the resources were properly recorded by

the National Park Service and evaluated under the eligibility criteria of the

National Register of Historic Places in accordance with Section 106 procedures.

Data recovery excavations and/or other mitigating measures will be carried out

where site avoidance is not possible.

• New construction or alterations and rehabilitation of historic structures will be

sensitively carried out in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards

for Archeology and Historic Preservation to ensure that character-defining

features are protected. Vegetation screening and sensitive topographic and/or

other site selection criteria will be used to minimize the visual intrusion of new

construction on historic viewsheds or in historic areas.

• Ethnographic resources will be protected and mitigated by such means as

identifying and maintaining access for recognized and affiliated groups to

traditional, spiritual/ceremonial, or resource gathering, and other activity areas.

As practical, new developments will be screened from these areas, and

conflicting uses will be relocated or timed to minimize disruptions.

• Cultural landscapes will be protected and any alterations and changes affecting

cultural landscapes and designated National Register Districts will follow the

Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties, with

Guidelines for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes (1996). All potential actions,

such as thinning of vegetation to reduce fuel loads, removal of exotic species,

modification of historic circulation patterns, removal of noncontributing or

nonhistoric structures and landscape features, or adaptive use of a cultural

landscape, will incorporate compatible design guidelines to retain essential

historic character and mitigate potential adverse effects.

• Further background research, resource inventories, and National Register of

Historic Places evaluations of historic properties will be carried out where

management information is lacking. The results of these efforts will be

incorporated into site-specific planning and compliance documents. All options

for preserving historic properties will be considered and evaluated. However, if

historic buildings, structures, or landscapes could not be reasonably preserved,

historical and architectural documentation will be completed in accordance with

the standards of the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), the Historic

American Engineering Record (HAER), or the Historic American Landscapes

Survey (HALS). The nature and scope of these mitigation measures will be

developed in consultation with the Oregon State Historic Preservation Officer,

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, and other concerned parties.

• Visitors will be educated on the importance of protecting the monument’s

cultural resources and leaving these undisturbed for the enjoyment of future

visitors.

74 Appendix A
• Museum collections will be accessioned, catalogued, protected, and preserved in

accordance with NPS standards and guidelines. 

Visitor Safety and Experiences

• Measures to reduce adverse effects of construction on visitor safety and

experience will be implemented, including project scheduling and the use of best

management practices (BMPs).

• Visitor safety concerns will be integrated into interpretative and educational

programs. Directional signs and education programs to promote understanding

among visitors will continue.

Socioeconomic Environment

• During the future planning and implementation of the approved management

plan for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, NPS staff will work with

local communities and county governments to further identify potential impacts

and mitigation measures that will best serve the interests and concerns of both

the National Park Service and the local communities.

• Partnerships will be pursued to improve the quality and diversity of community

amenities and services.

Environmentally Preferred Alternative

The environmentally preferred alternative is defined as “the alternative that will

promote national environmental policy as expressed in Section 101 of the National

Environmental Policy Act.” Section 101 states that it is the continuing responsibility of

the federal government to . . .

1. fulfill the responsibilities of each generation as trustee of the environment for

succeeding generations;

2. assure for all Americans safe, healthful, productive, and aesthetically and

culturally pleasing surroundings;

3. attain the widest range of beneficial uses of the environment without

degradation, risk to health or safety, or other undesirable and unintended

consequences;

4. preserve important historic, cultural, and natural aspects of our national heritage;

and maintain, wherever possible, an environment which supports diversity, and a

variety of individual choices;

5. achieve a balance between population and resource use which will permit high

standards of living and a wide sharing of life’s amenities; and

6. enhance the quality of renewable resources and approach the maximum

attainable recycling of depletable resources.

The environmentally preferable alternative is alternative B, the NPS selected alternative

for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. This alternative best satisfies the national

environmental goals – it provides the highest level of protection of natural and cultural

resources while concurrently providing for a wide range of neutral and beneficial uses of

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 75
the environment. The selected alternative maintains an environment that supports a

diversity and variety of individual choices, and it integrates resource protection with an

appropriate range of visitor uses and understanding.

The selected alternative (alternative B) surpasses the other alternatives in realizing the

full range of the Section 101 national environmental policy goals. The selected

alternative provides more resource protection at Cathedral Rock due to a land exchange

that would add 100 additional acres to the monument. In addition, the selected

alternative would provide more opportunities for public enjoyment and understanding

of the monument than the no-action alternative, and thus better fulfills criteria 3, 4, and

5 listed above.

Alternative C would provide for more visitor use opportunities, but there also would be

a higher potential for more impacts to natural resources in comparison with the selected

alternative. In addition, in alternative C the restoration of the Cant Ranch fields to native

vegetation would be an adverse effect on the cultural landscape of a national historic

district; however, it would provide a more natural landscape. Thus, alternative C would

not satisfy criterion 3 (attain the widest range of beneficial uses of the environment

without degradation) and criterion 4 (preserve important aspects of our national

heritage) as well as the selected alternative satisfies these criteria.

Why the Selected Alternative will not Have a Significant Effect

on the Human Environment

As defined in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) §1508.27, significance is determined by

examining the following criteria:

Impacts that may be both beneficial and adverse 

None of the impacts identified for the selected alternative will result in more than a

moderate level of impact. Moderate beneficial impacts for the selected alternative were

identified for soils and vegetation (due to riparian restoration, trail restoration, and user

capacity monitoring and adaptive management), and visitor use and experience (due to

increased recreation opportunities and visitor programs, as well as implementation of a

user capacity framework). Moderate adverse impacts for the selected alternative were

identified for vegetation (due to the effects of nonnative plants) and national monument

operations (due to the requirements for staffing, maintenance, and operational needs). 

Most impacts identified for the selected alternative were negligible to minor in intensity.

Most negligible to minor impacts were adverse and included impacts to: paleontological

resources (due to the increased potential for illegal fossil collecting), soils and vegetation

(due to visitor use and development), and wildlife (due to continued visitor use).

Negligible to minor beneficial impacts included impacts to: paleontological resources

(due to the opening of the mammal quarry and removal/restoration of social trails),

wildlife (due to vegetation and riparian restoration/protection), and visitor use and

experience (due to improvements in opportunities for visitors and persons with

disabilities).

76 Appendix A
Degree of effect on public health or safety

Visitor safety will remain a priority under the selected alternative. None of the actions

proposed in the selected alternative will adversely affect public health or safety. Indeed,

several of the actions will beneficially affect public health and safety, including:

increasing NPS staff presence, formalizing and maintaining trails, providing shade

structures at recreation sites, improving the road to Painted Cove, and redesigning the

Painted Hills Overlook.

Unique characteristics of the geographic area such as proximity to historic or cultural

resources, park lands, prime farmlands, wetlands, wild and scenic rivers, or ecologically

critical areas

As described in the environmental assessment, John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument contains significant historic and cultural resources, prime farmlands, small

wetlands along creeks, rivers, and springs, and a designated research natural area. The

monument is also adjacent to Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands and to

portions of the John Day River that are designated wild and scenic river sections. No

adverse effects will occur to historic structures and cultural landscapes under the

selected alternative. Although prime farmland soils exist within the monument,

primarily at the Cant Ranch, the selected alternative will not adversely affect these

areas—no new developments will be proposed in these areas and the agricultural fields

will remain in production. No impacts to wetlands as a result of the alternative will be

expected. The research natural area located in the monument’s Sheep Rock Unit will

not be affected by the alternative and it will be maintained to protect its important

natural qualities. The selected alternative will not impact adjacent BLM lands, other

than the potential for a land acquisition that would alter BLM land holdings. The

designated wild and scenic river sections of the John Day River are outside the

monument boundary and no impacts to them will occur. 

Degree to which effects on the quality of the human environment are likely to be highly

controversial

None of the actions proposed in the selected alternative have the potential to be highly

controversial. This is supported by the fact that the planning team received only a

handful of comments in response to the draft environmental assessment.

Degree to which the possible effects on the quality of the human environment are highly

uncertain or involve unique or unknown risks

There could be adverse impacts to fossils in the area due to increased potential for

illegal collection in the monument and other cumulative projects in the region; however,

the magnitude of the cumulative impact is unknown. It is not possible to predict the

impact to the paleontological resources that occur outside the monument. The

contribution of the selected alternative to any adverse cumulative impact is a small

increment. Partnership actions under the selected alternative will help to minimize the

impacts to area fossils and other geological resources.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 77
Degree to which the action may establish a precedent for future actions with significant

effects or represents a decision in principle about a future consideration

No actions are proposed in the selected alternative that are inconsistent with the

enabling legislation for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. The selected

alternative will not set any NPS precedent for future actions with significant effects, nor

represent a decision in principle about a future consideration.

Whether the action is related to other actions with individually insignificant but

cumulatively significant impacts

As noted in the environmental assessment, there could be long term adverse cumulative

impacts of unknown magnitude to area fossils. However, the actions proposed in the

selected alternative will add a small beneficial and adverse increment to the overall

cumulative impacts. Most of the cumulative impacts will be due to actions independent

of the selected alternative. Partnership actions under the selected alternative will help to

minimize the impacts to area fossils and other geological resources. In addition, the

cumulative impact to visitor use and experience (specifically visitor understanding,

education, and interpretation) will be long-term, beneficial, and of major intensity. The

actions under the selected alternative will add an appreciable amount to this beneficial

impact by increasing visitor opportunities and education programs related to the

resources located in the monument and in the John Day region. 

Degree to which the action may adversely affect districts, sites, highways, structures, or

objects listed on National Register of Historic Places or may cause loss or destruction of

significant scientific, cultural, or historical resources.

As described in the environmental assessment, no significant scientific, cultural, or

historical resources will be lost or destroyed as a result of the selected alternative.

Compliance with §106 of the National Historic Preservation Act was completed with a

concurrence with the NPS determination of no historic properties affected by the

Oregon State Historic Preservation Office in letters issued on September 23, 2008 and

December 17, 2008.

Degree to which the action may adversely affect an endangered or threatened species or its

critical habitat

The NPS determined that the selected alternative will have no effect on federally listed

threatened or endangered species or their critical habitat. This determination was

discussed with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National

Marine Fisheries Service on October 22, 2008 and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on

December 9, 2008 when both agencies indicated no additional consultation was needed.

Whether the action threatens a violation of Federal, state, or local environmental

protection law

This action violates no federal, state, or local environmental protection laws.

78 Appendix A
Impairment

In analyzing impairments in conjunction with the NEPA analysis for this project, the

National Park Service takes into account the fact that if impairment were likely to occur,

by operation of the Council on Environmental Quality’s regulations at 40 CFR, such

impacts will be considered to be major or significant. This is because the context and

intensity of the impact will be sufficient to render what will normally be a minor or

moderate impact to be major or significant. Taking this into consideration, NPS

guidance documents note that “Not all major or significant impacts under a NEPA

analysis are impairments. However, all impairments to NPS resources and values will

constitute a major or significant impact under NEPA. If an impact results in impairment,

the action should be modified to lessen the impact level. If the impairment cannot be

avoided by modifying the proposed action, that action cannot be selected for

implementation” (Interim Technical Guidance on Assessing Impacts and Impairment to

Natural Resources, National Park Service, Natural Resource Program Center, July 2003).

In addition to reviewing the list of significance criteria, the National Park Service has

determined that implementation of the selected alternative will not constitute an

impairment to the integrity of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument’s resources

and values. This conclusion is based on a thorough analysis of the environmental

impacts described in the environmental assessment. The environmental assessment

identified less than major adverse impacts on paleontological resources, soils,

vegetation, wildlife, archeological resources, and historic structures and cultural

landscapes. This conclusion is further based on the superintendent’s professional

judgment, as guided by the direction in NPS Management Policies 2006. Although the

selected alternative has some negative impacts, in many cases these adverse impacts are

the result of actions taken to preserve and restore other monument resources and

values. Overall, the plan results in benefits to monument resources and values,

opportunities for their enjoyment, and it does not result in their impairment.

Public Involvement

A variety of public involvement techniques were used for this project, including the use

of newsletters, public meetings, on-line information posting and commenting via the

National Park Service’s Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) system,

and the publication of notices in the Federal Register. In December 2004, a scoping

newsletter was distributed and two public meetings were held in the vicinity of the

monument to obtain feedback from the public about the monument and any ideas,

issues, or concerns. A total of about 30 people attended these meetings and nine

written comments were received in response to the newsletter. Topics raised included

visitor uses, types and levels of facilities and services, resource protection and

management, and partnerships.

A second newsletter was distributed in February 2006 that presented the plan’s

preliminary alternatives and three public meetings were held in the vicinity of the

monument. About 30 people attended these meetings. Written comments were received

from 37 individuals and organizations. Topics addressed by the commentors included

visitor access, trails, facilities, resource protection and management, and research

efforts.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 79
The draft general management plan / environmental assessment was made available for

public review during a 60-day period ending November 17, 2008. Public meetings were

held during the comment period in Dayville, Fossil, and John Day, Oregon. These

meetings were primarily informational in nature, with no substantive comments for the

plan being expressed. A total of three individuals attended these meetings. Written

comments were received from the Oregon State Historic Preservation Office; Friends of

Rudio Mountain, Incorporated; the Oregon Natural Desert Association; the Bureau of

Land Management’s Prineville District Office; and three citizens. Selected public

comments and NPS responses are below in the following section. A few minor changes

were made in the text as a result of comments received and documented in an Errata

prepared as a technical supplement to the environmental assessment. 

A notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement was published in the

Federal Register in September 2004. The notice that the project had received a waiver for

preparing an environmental impact assessment and approval to prepare an

environmental assessment was published in the Federal Register in April 2007. This

waiver was granted on the basis that the project was noncontroversial.

Consultation and coordination with other agencies, officials and organizations was

conducted during the development of the plan. This included Endangered Species Act

Section 7 consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic

and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service. National Historic

Preservation Act Section 106 review and consultation was completed with Oregon State

Historic Preservation Office. Consultation with the traditionally associated American

Indian tribes was initiated with a letter from the superintendent at the beginning of the

planning process inviting their participation.

Responses to Selected Comments Received during the Public

Review of the Draft General Management Plan

The following substantive comments and concerns were received during the public

review of the Draft General Management Plan/Environmental Assessment. Substantive

comments are defined by NPS Director’s Order 12 (DO-12, Section 4.6A) as one that

does one or more of the following: 

• Question, with a reasonable basis, the accuracy of information in the EA;

• Question, with a reasonable basis, the adequacy of the environmental analysis;

• Present reasonable alternatives other than those presented in the EA; and/or

• Cause changes or revisions in the proposal.

80 Appendix A
The substantive comments have been summarized below along with NPS responses.

The need for protection and

management of pictographs

(rock art) was not adequately

addressed in the plan.

Why did you dismiss

ethnographic resources

(namely rock art) as an

impact topic?

Why did you not include the

rock art within the “cultural”

management zone since rock

art is a type of cultural

resource?

The NPS made a conscious decision to limit the

information and discussion on pictographs (rock art)

located in or near the park due to the sensitivity of

those resources. The plan includes desired conditions

and strategies for management of ethnographic

resources (see pages 30-31) that provide guidance and

management direction for these resources. The NPS

will work with the tribes to ensure that these

resources are adequately protected and managed.

Furthermore, the NPS has committed to the future

development of a resource stewardship strategy (see

page 109 of the draft plan) that would guide the

monitoring and management of all cultural resources

in the monument, including rock art.

The NPS dismissed ethnographic resources (including

rock art) as an impact topic to be considered in the

environmental assessment because none of the

management actions proposed in the alternatives

would directly affect these resources and the level of

adverse impact to these resources would be negligible

to minor. Consequently, ethnographic resources was

dismissed from further consideration as an impact

topic. The plan includes desired conditions and

strategies for management of these resources and the

NPS is committed to ensuring their protection.

The “cultural” management zone used at the Sheep

Rock Unit is focused on the cultural resources and

history of the Cant Ranch National Historic District.

Even though the rock art is not included in this

management zone, it will still be adequately protected

as it would in all management zones, including the use

of all relevant laws, policies, and regulations.

Comments or Concerns Responses

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 81
Will the “transportation”

management zone

adequately protect the rock

art located along roads and

highways?

The irrigation techniques

proposed for use at the Cant

Ranch are not consistent with

the character of its historic

period.

Doesn’t the NPS have to

manage its lands to preserve

and maintain their

wilderness character?

Why not include restoration

of Pine Creek as a

partnership opportunity in

the plan? 

The “transportation” management zone is used along

transportation corridors that include rights-of-way for

roads and highways not owned or managed by the

NPS. The NPS recognizes the importance of

protecting rock art within these areas and will work

collaboratively to protect any cultural resources that

may be affected by transportation improvements

proposed by another agency. The NPS will work to

avoid or mitigate any impacts to these resources.

Language used in the description of the

transportation management zone on page 64 of the

plan will be revised to stress the importance of

resource protection. Furthermore, the rock art

management plan (to be developed) discussed above

will assist in the protection and management of these

cultural resources.

The NPS intends to preserve the historic character of

the Cant Ranch while utilizing irrigation techniques

that promote water conservation. Park staff will

consult with the National Park Service’s cultural

resource program and the Oregon State Historic

Preservation Officer on the type and method of

irrigation to ensure that they are compatible with the

historic period. In consultation with these parties, the

NPS will initiate a study to determine appropriate

irrigation techniques.

Although not proposed for wilderness designation,

the NPS will manage its lands adjacent to Bureau of

Land Management (BLM) lands that are potentially

suitable for wilderness designation to protect their

wilderness qualities and values. As described on page

14 of the plan, none of the management actions

included in the plan would preclude future

designation of these areas as wilderness.

Although the plan does not include specific reference

to restoration of Pine Creek, it does contain desired

conditions and management strategies for ecosystem

management and natural resources (see pages 19-23)

that includes partnership opportunities with other

federal and state agencies, American Indian tribes, and

private landowners. Similar to what is proposed for

the John Day River and Bridge Creek, the NPS would

pursue opportunities to improve the condition of the

park’s natural resources wherever possible.

Comments or Concerns Responses

82 Appendix A
Why do the plan alternatives

not include any reference to

energy conservation?

How will the NPS manage

livestock trespass and the

impacts they cause to park

resources?

Why did you dismiss water

resources (including water

quality and fish habitat) as

an impact topic?

Although not specifically included in the description

of actions contained in the alternatives, the NPS will

strive to be a leader in energy conservation and the

use of sustainable practices. The desired conditions

and management strategies for sustainable

design/development presented in the plan on pages

34-35 will be used at all times by the NPS.

The monument has a four-part strategy to respond to

cattle trespass. First, the NPS will continue to

maintain its boundary fences that surround all three

park units. Second, for those cattle that manage to

jump or crawl through the fence, the NPS will contact

the owners of the cattle and require their removal

within days of discovery. The NPS will continue to

work with neighboring ranchers to ensure that their

cattle are removed from the park as soon as possible

after discovery. This will include notification and in

some cases providing NPS staff assistance in moving

the cattle. Third, for non-responsive livestock owners,

the NPS will pursue legal action against owners

including fines, impoundment of cattle, and if

necessary, court appearances. Fourth, for

unbranded/unowned (slick) cattle that appear on park

lands, the NPS will contact the state brand inspector

and work cooperatively to either impound the cattle

or destroy them if they cannot be safely impounded.

The NPS dismissed water resources (including water

quality, water quantity, and fisheries) as an impact

topic to be considered in the environmental

assessment because the effects of the management

actions proposed in the alternatives would be

negligible to minor (see pages 44-45 of the plan).

Consequently, these resources were dismissed from

further consideration as impact topics. The plan

includes desired conditions and strategies for

management of these resources (see pages 23-26) and

the NPS is committed to ensuring their protection.

Comments or Concerns Responses

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 83
The plan does not include

needed management

direction for fish habitat.

The John Day River is listed

by the Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA) as a

303d stream; any impacts on

water quality should be taken

into consideration in this

plan, including addressing

total maximum daily loads

(TMDL).

The use of NPS water rights

should be evaluated and

consideration given to

dedication of some portion of

water for use as in-stream

flow.

Information presented in the

plan on the eligibility of BLM

lands as wilderness is

inaccurate.

The plan presents an

opportunity to coordinate

with the BLM on the

National Park Service’s

proposed user capacity

indicators and standards to

ensure that adjacent BLM

and NPS lands are managed

compatibly.

Chapter 1 of the plan includes desired conditions and

management strategies for ecosystem management,

natural resources, and federal-listed species (see pages

19-24) that provide management direction for fish

habitat. Furthermore, as described above, the plan

also includes desired conditions and management

strategies for water quality, water quantity, and

fisheries (see pages 24-26). The NPS will work

cooperatively with the USFWS and other affected

parties to ensure the protection and enhancement of

fish habitat.

The NPS proposes no actions in this plan that will

have any effects other than beneficial ones on water

quality.

The NPS is currently working with the watermaster to

establish an in-stream flow right on Rock Creek using

a portion of an existing Rock Creek water right. The

NPS will continue to evaluate the potential of

transferring any surplus water right to in-stream flow

wherever possible. Furthermore, pages 19-20 and 25-

26 of the plan include desired conditions and

management strategies for ecosystem management

and water quantity that discuss partnerships with

various agencies to protect and enhance natural

stream flows.

The comment letter provided by the BLM included

updates to the information presented on pages 13-14

of the plan regarding the eligibility of BLM lands as

wilderness.

The NPS welcomes the opportunity to work with the

BLM on these lands, however, at the present time

none of the adjacent BLM lands have established

indicators and standards of the type required by

statutes affecting the NPS. The NPS will continue to

consult with the BLM to improve coordination and

consistency of federal land management issues.

Comments or Concerns Responses

84 Appendix A
Conclusion

Based on the environmental analysis as documented in the environmental

assessment, together with the capability of the mitigation measures to avoid, reduce,

or eliminate impacts, and with the due consideration for the nature of public

comments, results in determination that the approved plan is not a major federal

action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. Negative

environmental impacts that could occur are no more than minor to moderate in

intensity. There are no significant impacts on public health, public safety, threatened

or endangered species, sites or districts listed in or eligible for listing in the National

Register of Historic Places, or other unique characteristics of the region. No highly

uncertain or controversial impacts, unique or unknown risks, significant cumulative

effects, or elements of precedence were identified. Implementation of the selected

alternative will not violate any federal, state, or local environmental protection law.

Based on the foregoing, it has been determined that an EIS is not required for this

project and thus will not be prepared. The plan can be implemented as soon as

practicable but not sooner than 30 days following the date of the approval of the

General Management Plan.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 85
Errata Sheets

Environmental Assessment

General Management Plan

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

February 2009

Corrections and revisions to the Draft General Management Plan / Environmental Assessment are

listed in this section. Revisions were made in response to comments from public and agency reviews

of the environmental assessment. These revisions have not resulted in substantial modification of the

selected alternative. It has been determined that the revisions do not require additional

environmental analysis. 

Additions to the text are shown in bold and text removed is shown with strikeout. The page numbers

referenced are from the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument Draft General Management Plan /

Environmental Assessment.

Page 10 – Under “Fundamental Resources and Values; Other Important Resources and Values”

• Archeological sites and pictographs, especially those in Picture Gorge, are valued for their

association with and representation of the cultural heritage of American Indians and others.

Page 13 – Under “Wilderness Eligibility”

However, these lands also are adjacent to unroaded Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands that

were recently evaluated by the BLM and, although unroaded, were found not to possess

wilderness character due to previous logging activities. also may be suitable for wilderness

designation, although the Bureau of Land Management has not recently evaluated these lands. The

proposed management zoning of these lands by the BLM is compatible with the adjacent

management of the NPS lands. The BLM will reevaluate the subject lands every five years to

assess their wilderness character. Recognizing the wilderness characteristics of the NPS lands, the

lands have been included in management zones (i.e., primitive and backcountry zones) in the

alternatives that would continue to protect these areas’ existing wilderness qualities. No actions are

being proposed in the alternatives that would be inconsistent with or jeopardize possible future

designation of the areas, in combination with the adjacent BLM lands, as wilderness.

86 Appendix A
Climate change is occurring and is expected to affect the monument’s weather, vegetation,

wildlife, and visitors (e.g., use seasons). These changes will have direct implications on

resource management and monument operations, and on the way visitors use and 

experience the monument. Although climate change will affect the park during the life of

this plan, many of the specific effects, the rate of changes, and the severity of impacts are

not known. 

While there are no laws or policies that provide direct guidance on addressing climate

change, there is guidance that indirectly addresses climate change, including the NPS Organic

Act, Executive Order 13423 (includes requirements for the reduction of greenhouse gases

and other energy and water conservation measures), Department of the Interior Secretarial

Order 3226 (ensures that climate change impacts be taken into account in connection with

Departmental planning and decision making), and NPS Management Policies 2006 (including

sections on environmental leadership [§1.8], sustainable energy design [§9.1.1.6],and energy

management [§9.1.7], 

Desired Conditions: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is a leader in its efforts to

address climate change, reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and increasing its use of

renewable energy and other sustainable practices so it is a carbon neutral park. Education

and interpretive efforts help visitors understand the process of global warming, climate

change, changes to monument resources, and the wider environment, and how they can

respond. NPS staff promote innovation, best practices, adaptive management, and 

partnerships to respond to the challenges of climate change and their effects on monument

resources. NPS staff proactively monitor, plan, and adapt to the effects of climate change by

using the best information as it becomes available.

Strategies: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument will become a member of the Climate

Friendly Parks program, measuring monument-based greenhouse emissions, developing 

sustainable strategies to mitigate these emissions and adapt to climate change impacts, 

educating the public about these efforts, and developing future action plans. Scientific 

studies and inventories will be encouraged to identify and document changes caused by 

climate change, to predict potential changes, and to assist in identifying potential responses

to climate change. 

Since emissions from vehicles contribute to the monument’s emissions, options to improve

transportation efficiencies will be explored, including NPS and visitor activities. Emissions from

visitors driving to get to the monument, and from employees commuting to work and 

traveling for business all add to the emissions associated with the monument. Opportunities

for alternative transportation options, as well as effective carbon offset strategies, will be

explored. 

Education and interpretive efforts will engage NPS employees, partners, visitors, and the 

public on climate change, providing the latest monument research and monitoring data and

trends, informing the public about what responses are being taken at the monument, and

inspiring visitors to act to reduce their carbon footprint.

NPS staff will work with local, regional, and national agencies, universities, and other partners

to conduct scenario planning for climate change, and identify actions that can be taken to

respond to these changes.

Anticipated climate change impacts, such as changes in vegetation and river flows, will be

incorporated into management plans.

(See also the strategies identified above under “Sustainable Design / Development’)

Climate

Change

Page 35 – Add under “Other Topics” in Table 1: Servicewide Laws and Policies Pertaining to John

Day Fossil Beds National Monument 

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 87
88 Appendix A

Page 42 – Add under “Planning Issues and Concerns”

Climate Change

Climate change is a long-term phenomenon resulting from the effects of global warming that

has affected natural and human systems world-wide. Changes within the natural systems of the

Intermountain west and the John Day region include:

• Temperatures are increasing - average temperatures throughout the year have increased,

with the greatest increases occurring in springtime temperatures. Nighttime temperatures

have increased by 3.2 degrees Fahrenheit. The frequency and intensity of wildland fire has

increased, with longer fire seasons.

• Precipitation is declining – the spring/summer flow volume of area rivers and creeks has

declined by 22%. The median flow date of the John Day River has shifted 10 days earlier

over the last century. Other expected hydrologic changes include increased winter flows

and decreased summer flows.

These changes are expected to continue and possibly accelerate over time. 

Because the drivers of climate change are largely outside the monument, the National Park

Service alone does not have the ability to prevent climate change from happening. The full

extent of climate change impacts to resources and visitor experience is not known, nor do

managers and policy makers yet agree on the most effective response mechanisms for

minimizing impacts and adapting to change. Thus, unlike other issues, this plan does not

provide definitive solutions or directions to resolving the issue of controlling impacts of

climate change on John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. Rather, the plan provides some

general directions and strategies that can help minimize the monument’s contribution to

climate change (see below). The plan also recognizes that the management actions and

facilities being proposed in all of the alternatives need to be adopted with future climate

change and impacts in mind as past conditions are not necessarily useful guides for future

planning. 

The NPS staff will consider this issue and incorporate it into its management strategies and

operations in order to reduce the monument’s contribution to climate change and adapt and

respond to the effects of climate change on monument resources.

Page 64 – Add under “Transportation; Resource Conditions” in Table 3: Management Zones

All cultural resources would be preserved and protected as much as feasible to the greatest extent

possible.

Page 109 – Add under “Future Studies and Implementation Plans Needed”

• a study/plan to determine the most appropriate irrigation techniques to be used at the Cant

Ranch that promote water conservation and are compatible with the property’s historic

character

Page 141 – Add under “Cultural Resources; Overview”

The Clarno and Sheep Rock units contain pictographs (generally recognized to be the earliest record

of human presence) that are estimated to be between 3,500 and 150 some 2,000 years old.

Researchers suggest that these pictographs were created by American Indians traveling through the

area.
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 89

To provide for the establishment of the Clara Barton National Historic Site,

Maryland; John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon ; Knife River

Indian Villages National Historic Site, North Dakota ; Springfield Armory

National Historic Site, Massachusetts ; Tuskegee Institute National Historic

Site, Alabama ; Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, New York ; and

Sewall-Belmont House National Historic Site, Washington, District of

Columbia ; and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of

America in Congress assembled,

TITLE I

Sec. 101. (a) Unless otherwise provided hereafter, the Secretary of the Interior

(hereinafter referred to as the “Secretary”) is authorized to acquire by

purchase with donated or appropriated funds, donation, exchange, or by

transfer from another Federal agency such lands and interests in lands as

hereafter provided for establishment as units of the national park system as

follows:

(1) for establishment as the Clara Barton National Historic Site,

Maryland, those lands depicted on the map entitled “Boundary Map,

Clara Barton National Historic Site, Maryland”, numbered NHSCLBA 90,001 and dated February 1974, which shall include the land

and improvements occupied by Clara Barton, founder of the

American Red Cross located at 5801 Oxford Road, Glen Echo,

Maryland : Provided, That the above-mentioned land and

improvements may be acquired only by donation : And pro provided

further, That the donation of any privately owned lands within the

historic site may not be accepted unless and until the property is

vacant;

(2) for establishment as the John Day Fossil Beds National

Monument, Oregon, those lands depicted on the map entitled

“Boundary Map, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument”,

numbered NM-JDFB-20,014-A and dated June 1971: Provided,

That the national monument shall not be established unless and

until the State of Oregon donates or agrees to donate the Thomas

Condon-John Day Fossil Beds, Clarno, and Painted Hills State

Parks : Provided further, That the Secretary shall not acquire a fee

title interest to more than one thousand acres of privately owned

lands except by donation or exchange : Provided further, That the

Secretary shall designate the principal visitor center as the

“Thomas Condon Visitor Center”;

Historic sites and national

monument. 

Establishment.

Land acquisition.

Clara Barton National

Historic Site, Md.

16 USC 461 note.

APPENDIX B: LEGISLATION

(NOTE: Sections relating to John Day Fossil Beds National Monument are in bold type.)

Public Law 93-486

93rd Congress, H. R. 13157

October 26, 1974

An Act

John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument,

Oreg. 

16 USC 431 

note.

Thomas Condon

Visitor Center,

designation.
(3) for establishment as the Knife River Indian Villages National

Historic Site, North Dakota, those lands depicted on the map entitled

“Boundary Map, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site,

North Dakota”, numbered 468-20,012 and dated July 1970;

(4) for establishment as the Springfield Armory National Historic Site,

Massachusetts, those lands depicted on the map entitled “Boundary

Map, Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Massachusetts”,

numbered NHS-SPAR-91,003 and dated January 1974, the oldest

manufacturing arsenal in the United States: Provided, That the historic

site shall not be established unless an agreement is executed which

will assure the historical integrity of the site and until such lands as are

needed for the historic site are donated for this purpose;

(5) for establishment as the Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site,

Alabama, those lands depicted on the map entitled “Boundary Map,

Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site, Alabama”, numbered NHSTI 20,000-C and dated September 1973, which shall include the home

of Booker T. Washington, the Carver Museum, and an antebellum

property adjacent to the campus of Tuskegee Institute, known as Grey

Columns ; and

(6) for establishment as the Martin Van Buren National Historic Site,

New York, those lands depicted on the map entitled “Boundary Map,

Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, New York”, numbered

NHS-MAVA-91,001 and dated January 1974, which shall include the

home of Martin Van Buren, eighth President of the United States.

(b) The Secretary may also acquire personal property associated with the areas

referred to in subsection (a) of this section. Lands and interests therein owned

by a State or any political subdivision thereof which are acquired for the

purposes of subsection (a) of this section may be acquired only by donation.

Sec. 102. ( a ) When the Secretary determines that an adequate interest in

lands has been acquired to constitute an administrable unit for each of the

areas described in section 1 of this Act, he may, after notifying the Committees

on Interior and Insular Affairs of the United States Congress of his intention

to do so at least fourteen days in advance, declare the establishment of such

unit by publication of a notice to that effect in the Federal Register. Such

notice shall contain a map or other description of the boundaries of the unit,

together with an explanation of the interests acquired and the costs incident

thereto. The Secretary may refrain from acquiring property for establishment

of any unit authorized by this Act where, in his judgment, satisfactory

agreements or donations with respect to properties which are needed for the

protection and administration of a particular unit have not been

consummated with the owners of such properties.

(b) Pending the establishment of each unit and, thereafter, the

Secretary shall administer the property acquired pursuant to this Act

in accordance with the provisions of the Act of August 25, 1916 (39

Stat. 535), as amended and supplemented, and, to the extent

applicable, the provisions of the Act of August 21, 1935 (49 Stat. 666),

as amended.

Sec. 103. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary is

authorized to construct roads on real property in non-Federal ownership

within the boundaries of the Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site. Any

roads so constructed shall be controlled and maintained by the owners

of the real property.

Knife River Indian

Villages National Historic

Site, N. Dak.

16 USC 461 note.

Springfield Armory

National Historic Site,

Mass.

16 USC 461 note.

Tuskegee Institute

National Historic Site,

Ala.

16 USC 461 note.

Martin Van Buren

National Historic Site,

N.Y.

16 USC 461 note.

Personal property,

acquisition.

Notice to congressional

committees.

Publication in Federal

Register.

Administration.

16 USC I.

16 USC 461.

Tuskegree National

Historic Site, road

consturction.

90 Appendix B
Sec. 104. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be

necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act, not to exceed, however, the

following:

(a) Clara Barton National Historic Site, $812,000 for acquisition of

lands and interests in lands and for development ;

(b) John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, $400,000 for the

acquisition of lands and interests in lands and $4,435,200 for

development ;

(c) Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, $600,000 for the

acquisition of hands and interests in lands and $2,268,000 for

development ;

(d) Springfield Armory National Historic Site, $5,300,000 for

development;

(e) Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site, $185,000 for the

acquisition of lands and interests in lands and $2,722,000 for

development; and

(f) Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, $213,000 for acquisition

of lands and interests in lands and $2,737,000 for development.

TITLE II

Sec. 201. In order to preserve for the benefit and inspiration of the people of

the United States as a national historic site, the Sewall-Belmont House within

the District of Columbia, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to enter

into a cooperative agreement to assist in the preservation and interpretation of

such house.

Sec. 202. The property subject to cooperative agreement pursuant to section

101 of this Act is hereby designated as the “Sewall-Belmont House National

Historic Site”.

Sec. 203. The cooperative agreement shall contain, but shall not be limited to,

provisions that the Secretary, through the National Park Service, shall have

right of access at all reasonable times to all public portions of the property

covered by such agreement for the purpose of conducting visitors through

such property and interpreting it to the public, that no changes or alterations

shall be made in such property except by mutual agreement between the

Secretary and the other parties to such agreement. The agreement may

contain specific provisions which outline in detail the extent of the

participation by the Secretary in the restoration, preservation, and

maintenance of the historic site.

Sec. 204. There are hereby authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be

necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act, but not to exceed $500,000.

Approved October 26, 1974.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 

HOUSE REPORT No. 93-1285 (Comm. on Interior and Insular Affairs)

SENATE REPORT No. 93-1233 (Comm. on Interior and Insular Affairs)

CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol.120 (1974):

Aug. 19, considered and passed House.

Oct. 8, considered and passed Senate, amended.

Oct. 16, House concurred in Senate amendments.

Appropriation.

Sewall-Belmont

House National

Historic Site, D.C.

16 USC 461 note.

Cooperative

agreement.

Appropriation.

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 91
Excerpted from

Public Law 95-625

November 10, 1978

(11) John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon : To add 

approximately one thousand four hundred and eleven acres, and to delete

approximately one thousand six hundred and twenty acres as generally

depicted on the map entitled “Boundary Map, John Day Fossil Beds

National Monument, Oregon”, numbered 177-30,000-B, and dated May

1978: $3,500,000. The Act of October 26, 1974 (88 Stat. 1461), which designates the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is amended by

deleting the second proviso of section l01(a) (2). Furthermore, not withstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Secretary may, if

he determines that to do so will not have a substantial adverse effect on

the preservation of the fossil and other resources within the remainder of

the monument, convey approximately sixty acres acquired by the United

States for purposes of the monument in exchange for non-Federal lands

within the boundaries of the monument, and, effective upon such

conveyance, the boundaries of the monument are hereby revised to

exclude the lands conveyed.

Land conveyance.

92 Appendix B
The National Park and Recreation Act of

1978 (16U.S.C. § 1a-7) directs the National

Park Service to consider, as part of a planning

process, what modifications of external

boundaries might be necessary to carry out

park unit purposes. Subsequent to this act,

Congress also passed Public Law 101-628,

the Arizona Desert Wilderness Act. Section

1216 of this act, codified at 16 U.S.C. §1a-12,

directs the Secretary of the Interior to

develop criteria to evaluate any proposed

changes to the existing boundaries of

individual park units. 16 U.S.C. §1a-13 calls

for among other things the National Park

Service to consult with affected agencies and

others regarding a proposed boundary

change, and to provide an estimate of

acquisition cost, if any, related to the

boundary adjustment. The legislation also

requires that a statement on the relative

priority of acquisition of each parcel be

provided.

These legislative provisions are implemented

through NPS Management Policies 2006,

Section 3.5, which states that the National

Park Service will conduct studies of potential

boundary adjustments and may make

boundary revisions to

• protect significant resources and values,

or to enhance opportunities for public

enjoyment related to park purposes; 

• address operational and management

issues, such as the need for access or the

need for the boundaries to correspond to

logical boundary delineations such as

topographic or other natural features or

roads; or

• otherwise protect park resources critical

to fulfilling park purposes.

If the acquisition will be made using

appropriated funds, and is not merely a

technical boundary revision, the criteria set

forth by Congress at 16 U.S.C. 4601-9(c)(2)

must be met.

• The added lands will be feasible to

administer, considering their size,

configuration, and ownership; costs; the

views of and impacts on local

communities and surrounding

jurisdictions; and other factors such as

the presence of hazardous substances or

exotic species.

• Other alternatives for management and

resource protection are not adequate.

During the course of the planning process,

one area, known as the Cathedral Rock

Property, was identified as potential addition

to John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.

The following is a review of the criteria for

boundary adjustment as applied to John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument. This review

is included as supporting documentation for

the alternatives, which include a

recommendation for a boundary adjustment

in the Sheep Rock Unit of the monument. 

This plan does not address the legislative

requirement to provide a cost estimate for the

boundary adjustment nor does it include the

relative priority for acquisition. However, the

legislative proposal for the boundary

adjustment and accompanying support

materials would include both of these

requirements.

CATHEDRAL ROCK PROPERTY 

The monument would pursue a land

exchange with an adjacent private landowner

and the Bureau of Land Management in

order to protect the scenery of Cathedral

Rock, an important landmark and key

geologic feature; to protect riparian resources

along the John Day River; and to facilitate

public access and enjoyment of this resource.

Description of the Property

The property is approximately 100 acres and

is located along State Highway 19 and the

John Day River halfway in between the Blue

Basin area and the Foree area in the northern

portion of the Sheep Rock Unit. The

property is adjacent to an isolated 40-acre

NPS-owned parcel and is highly visible by

the public traveling on State Highway 19. The

APPENDIX C: ANALYSIS OF BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT 

AND LAND PROTECTION CRITERIA

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 93
94 Appendix C 

property is currently owned by Jim and

Charlotte Barker and contains no permanent

improvements. Their primary interest is to

obtain title to BLM land adjacent to their

ranch. The area that surrounds Cathedral

Rock is a steep canyon and encompasses the

John Day River. 

Criterion: To protect significant resources

and values or to enhance opportunities for

public enjoyment related to park unit

purposes.

Protection of Significant Resources or

Values. The property contains dramatic

scenery that flanks Cathedral Rock.

Cathedral Rock is identified in the General

Management Plan as a fundamental resource

and value. Fundamental resources and values

are those elements that are essential to

maintaining the significance of the

monument and meeting its legislated

purpose. The Cathedral Rock area is

specifically identified as a representative

example of a scenic resource. The property

also contains approximately one mile of the

John Day River. The John Day River is

identified in the General Management Plan as

a fundamental resource and value. The

property contains important riparian habitat

and is a valued resource. Acquiring the

property would ensure the National Park

Service’s ability to protect the dramatic

scenery of and surrounding Cathedral Rock

and prevent cattle from damaging vegetation

and causing erosion around the well-known

feature and in the riparian zone. Acquisition

of the property would also protect them from

future development.

Enhance Opportunities for Public

Enjoyment. Acquisition of the property

would enhance public enjoyment by

protecting the impressive scenic resources of

Cathedral Rock. Both Cathedral Rock and

the John Day River are highly visible by the

public traveling on State Highway 19.

Acquisition of the property would also

provide general public access to the John Day

River, as well as present a special opportunity

to provide a put-in/takeout site for

recreational boating and fishing. The

property would offer opportunities for

visitors seeking to view scenic lands, explore

a remote natural area, and participate in river

recreation.

Criterion: The added lands will be feasible

to administer, considering their size,

configuration, ownership; costs; the views

of and impacts on local communities and

surrounding jurisdictions; and other

factors such as the presence of hazardous

substances or exotic species.

Feasibility to Administer. The

recommended addition and boundary

adjustment will be feasible for the National

Park Service to manage and would not

substantially increase the NPS workload to

manage these lands. Acquisition of the

property would allow the National Park

Service to eliminate cattle grazing in the

vicinity of Cathedral Rock and in its adjacent

riparian zone. The added lands can be

conveniently accessed and are adjacent to

existing NPS land. Acquiring the property

actually improves access to the adjacent

monument land since the property can be

accessed from State Highway 19.

Impacts to Local Communities. These lands

are currently in private ownership. However,

since public lands would be traded on an

equal value basis there would be no change to

tax revenue to Wheeler County.

Other Factors. There are no known

hazardous substance issues associated with

the property, and appropriate hazardous

material surveys would be conducted prior to

acquisition. 

Criterion: Other alternatives for

management and resource protection are

not adequate.

Other alternatives for management and

resource protection have been considered

and are not adequate. The alternative to NPS

acquisition is the continuation of private

ownership. Historic and current land use has

been primarily cattle grazing, which has

degraded this key scenic resource and
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 95

continues to impact the riparian and scenic

qualities of the area. Acquiring fee simple title

to the property is the only way to adequately

protect the resource. The current landowner

is willing to cooperate with a land exchange

involving the Bureau of Land Management

and the National Park Service. This is a

creative approach, and actual costs are

unknown at this time. This opportunity could

be lost if these lands are sold to another

owner.
96

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APPENDIX D: STATE HISTORIC PRESENTATION OFFICE CONSULTATION LETTER

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 97
98
PLANNING TEAM MEMBERS

National Park Service, 

Denver Service Center

Kerri Cahill, Community Planner

• Responsible for writing the description of

user capacity and for developing

indicators and standards. 

• M.S.P., Natural Resource Planning; Ph.D.,

Natural Resource Recreation

Management. Six years with the National

Park Service.

Greg Jarvis, Project Manager

• Overall responsibility for preparation of

the plan. 

• B.S., Geology. Twenty years with the

National Park Service. 

Patrick Malone, Natural Resource Specialist 

• Responsible for writing the descriptions

of visitor use and experience and

monument operations; assessing impacts

on these topics; assisted with developing

user capacity indicators and standards. 

• B.S., Natural Resources and

Environmental Management; M.P.A.,

Environmental Policy Analysis. Three

years with the National Park Service; nine

years with state and local government;

two years with a nonprofit land trust. 

Michael Rees, Natural Resource Specialist 

• Responsible for writing the description of

natural resources; assessing impacts on

natural resources; and writing the

floodplain statement of findings.

• B.A., Environmental Studies; M.F.S.,

Forest Science. Eighteen years with the

National Park Service. 

Larry Van Horn, Cultural Resource Specialist 

• Responsible for writing the descriptions

of archeological resources, historic

structures, and cultural landscapes; and

assessing impacts on these resources.

• B.A., History; M.A., Anthropology; Ph.D.,

Anthropology. Thirty years with the

National Park Service. 

National Park Service, John Day Fossil

Beds National Monument

Regan Dunn, Paleobotanist 

• Involved in the development of

alternatives and the selection of the

preferred alternative; provided input on

paleontological concerns, needs, and

impacts.

• Seven years with the National Park

Service. 

John Fiedor, Chief of Visitor Services

• Involved in the development of

alternatives and interpretive and visitor

service concerns, needs, and impacts.

• Thirty-four years with the National Park

Service. 

Ted Fremd, Paleontologist and Science

Advisor (Pacific West Region) 

• Involved in the development of

alternatives and paleontological concerns,

needs, and impacts.

• Twenty-nine years with the National Park

Service. 

Jim Hammett, Superintendent

• Involved in all aspects of the general

management plan, from initial planning

through selection of the preferred

alternative.

• Thirty-five years with the National Park

Service. 

Shirley Hoh, Integrated Resource Manager 

• Involved in the development of

alternatives and the selection of the

preferred alternative; provided input on

natural and cultural resource concerns,

needs, and impacts. 

• Thirty-one years with the National Park

Service.

PREPARERS AND CONSULTANTS

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument 99
100 Preparers and Consultants

National Park Service, 

Pacific West Regional Office

Keith Dunbar, Chief of Park Planning and

Environmental Compliance

• Involved in the development of

alternatives and the selection of the

preferred alternative; provided input on

planning concerns and needs. 

• Thirty-two years with the National Park

Service.

Erica Owens, Historical Landscape Architect 

• Assisted with the description and impact

assessment of historic structures and

cultural landscapes; involved in the

development of alternatives and the

selection of the preferred alternative.

• Seven years with the National Park

Service.

Cheryl Teague, Landscape Architect/Planner 

• Involved in the development of

alternatives and the selection of the

preferred alternative; provided input on

planning concerns and needs. 

• Sixteen years with the National Park

Service.

CONSULTANTS

Chuck Donley, GIS Specialist, Donley

Associates, Denver, CO

OTHER CONTRIBUTORS

Eric Lord, Water Rights Specialist, NPS,

Water Resources Division, Water Rights

Branch, Fort Collins, CO

Tom Rodhouse, Ecologist, NPS, Inventory &

Monitoring Program, Upper Columbia Basin

Network, Bend, OR 

Publication Services

Glenda Heronema, Visual Information

Specialist, National Park Service, Denver

Service Center

June McMillen, Writer-Editor, National Park

Service, Denver Service Center

Linda Ray, Visual Information Specialist,

National Park Service, Denver Service Center
As the nation’s principal conservation agency, the Department of the Interior has the responsibility for most of our nationally owned

public lands and natural resources. This includes fostering sound use of our land and water resources; protecting our fish, wildlife,

and biological diversity; preserving the environmental and cultural values of our national parks and historical places; and providing

for the enjoyment of life through outdoor recreation. The department assesses our energy and mineral resources and works to 

ensure that their development is in the best interests of all our people by encouraging stewardship and citizen participation in their

care. The department also has a major responsibility for American Indian reservation communities and for people who live in island

territories under U.S. administration.

NPS D-92A / May 2009 / Printed on recycled paper
National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Oregon

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

HCR 82, Box 126

Kimberly, Oregon 97848