[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 3, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30251-30252]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-14653]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Final Environmental Impact Statement for Visitor Services Plan, 
Crater Lake National Park, Oregon

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of Final Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to Sec. 102(2)C) of the National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (Pub. L. 91-190, as amended), the National Park Service has 
prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) assessing the 
potential impacts of the Visitor Services Plan for Crater lake National 
Park, Oregon. Once approved, the plan will guide the management and use 
of the developed areas of the park.
    The Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Visitor Services Plan 
(DEIS) was released for public review on December 12, 1997. A Notice of 
Availability was published in the Federal Register on December 12, 
1997, to formally initiate a 45-day public review period (which closed 
on January 26, 1998). The FEIS contains responses to the comments 
received and minor modifications or clarifications to the document as 
needed in response to comments.
    Alternative A (the proposed action) is a mix of proposals that are 
intended to protect park resources and enhance the visitor experience. 
Alternative B (no action) would continue the existing conditions at the 
park and would allow for the completion of any facilities currently 
under construction. Alternative C would offer more self-directed 
visitor experiences that would be less facility-dependent and less 
structured than at present. Alternative D would enhance interpretation 
and provide a wider variety of commercial and NPS visitor services. 
Alternative E is primarily based on the planning direction presented in 
the Record of Decision for the 1995 Development Concept Plan/
Environmental Impact Statement, which focused on concentrating visitor 
facilities at Rim Village.
    The environmental consequences of the proposed action and the 
alternatives were fully documented in the DEIS, and mitigation provided 
as appropriate to minimize impacts. The FEIS states that the removal of 
the parking lot north of the cafeteria building will have an adverse 
effect on the Rim Village Historic District. However, a programmatic 
agreement has been developed among the National Park Service, the state 
historic preservation office, and the Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation to provide measures for mitigating the adverse effects.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: It should be noted that this FEIS is an 
``abbreviated'' final environmental impact statement (changes from the 
DEIS are minor, with no new information which might have a significant 
effect on the environment). The FEIS was prepared in accordance with 
environmental regulations set forth at 40 CFR 1503.4(c). It is 
recommended that readers of the FEIS have available a copy of the DEIS. 
The ``no-action'' period for this FEIS will end thirty (30) days after 
the Environmental Protection Agency has listed the availability of the 
document in the Federal Register. For further information, please 
contact the Superintendent, Crater Lake National Park, P.O. Box 7, 
Crater Lake, Oregon, 97064; telephone (541) 594-2211.
    Copies of the FEIS will be available for public inspection at the 
park headquarters, as well as at area libraries.


[[Page 30252]]


    Dated: May 19, 1998.
William C. Walters,
Deputy Regional Director, Pacific West Region.
[FR Doc. 98-14653 Filed 6-2-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-P