[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 156 (Tuesday, August 12, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46915-46916]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-18571]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Denali Park Road Vehicle Management Plan Environmental Impact 
Statement

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: The National Park Service (NPS) intends to prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to develop and implement a plan to 
manage vehicles along the Denali park road, including carrying capacity 
(the maximum number of vehicles that can be accommodated on the Denali 
park road May-September). The goal of the plan is to provide a high 
quality experience for visitors while protecting wilderness resource 
values, scenic values, wildlife and other park resources, and 
maintaining the unique character of the park road. The plan will 
comprehensively evaluate the existing visitor transportation system to 
determine its effectiveness in protecting park resources and providing 
for visitor access and enjoyment. Demand for bus seats exceeds capacity 
in some cases and trends indicate that visitation will continue to 
increase. There is also a need to accommodate the changing 
demographics, interests, and needs of visitors.
    The EIS will evaluate a no action alternative of maintaining the 
existing vehicle management system on the Denali park road including 
current bus schedules, vehicle allocation, and carrying capacity. The 
effectiveness of the existing transportation system will be assessed 
and used to guide development of a range of action alternatives.
    Action alternatives will consider potential changes to 
transportation system components including carrying capacity, and 
allocation of vehicle use among shuttle buses, tours, inholders, 
professional photographers, and administrative vehicles. It will also 
consider changes to bus scheduling and spacing; the size and type of 
buses; tour services; educational opportunities and interpretive 
services; wildlife viewing opportunities; and possibly other factors. 
Alternatives may also consider operational improvements such as the 
quality of the buses, space for backpacks and bicycles, communications, 
accessibility and interpretive services (both on the buses or prior to 
departure). The NPS may consider utilizing an adaptive management 
approach based on a Before-After-Control-Impact (BACI) experimental 
design to implement any proposed changes. This BACI approach would 
increase the ability to detect and correct any future negative impacts 
on visitor experience or park resources and values caused by management 
actions.
    The NPS will consider a wide range of information including data 
collected from the 1930's to the present. Intensive studies conducted 
over the last three years on wildlife populations and behavior, social 
science studies on visitor experience, and extensive modeling of 
traffic patterns on the park road will be considered in the development 
and analysis of alternatives.
    This EIS is being prepared in accordance with the requirements of 
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 
4331 et seq.), and its implementing regulations at 40 CFR part 1500.
    Scoping: The planning team requests input from interested federal 
and state agencies, local governments, groups, organizations, park 
visitors, and the public. Written and verbal scoping comments are being 
solicited. Further information on this planning process will be 
available through public scoping meetings, press releases, and the park 
Web site. Public scoping meetings will be held in Anchorage, Denali 
Park, Susitna Valley, and Fairbanks, Alaska in 2008. Additional 
locations may be added as appropriate. Specific dates, times, and 
locations of scoping meetings will be announced in local media and 
posted on the NPS Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) Web 
site at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/DENA.
    Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or 
other

[[Page 46916]]

personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware 
that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of this project should be received 
on or before September 30, 2008. The draft EIS is projected to be 
available in early 2010.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be mailed to the address below. 
Electronic comments may be submitted to the NPS Planning, Environment, 
and Public Comment (PEPC) Web site: http://parkplanning.nps.gov/DENA. 
To comment using PEPC, select the ``Denali Park Road Vehicle Management 
Plan'', then select ``Open for Public Comment''.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Adrienne Lindholm, Outdoor Recreation 
Planner, Denali Planning, 240 West 5th Avenue, Anchorage, AK 99501, 
(907) 644-3613.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Denali National Park contains one of the 
most intact predator-prey ecosystems in the world as well as one of the 
best opportunities in North America to view wildlife in its natural 
setting. Denali National Park was established in 1917 as a game refuge 
and conserving wildlife and protecting opportunities to view wildlife 
remain its most important values. Key resources and values include: 
Wildlife populations, wildlife habitat, and the processes and 
components of the park's natural ecosystem; wilderness character, 
wilderness resource values, and wilderness recreational opportunities; 
scenic and geologic values of Mount McKinley and surrounding mountain 
landscape; and visitor enjoyment and inspiration from observing 
wildlife in its natural habitat and other natural features. Denali is 
now one of the most visited subarctic national parks in the world, with 
the vast majority of visitation focused along the 90-mile park road. 
Park managers must ensure that Denali's vehicle management plan 
protects these critical resource values.
    Before 1972, Denali visitation was low because travelers arrived 
either by train or by an arduous overland route on the unimproved 
Denali Highway. In 1972 park visitation increased 100% in direct 
response to the opening of the George Parks Highway which created a 
direct corridor from Anchorage to the park. Anticipating this increase, 
park managers implemented a mandatory visitor transportation system 
that same year to minimize disturbances to wildlife and scenery. This 
was one of the first visitor transportation systems in the national 
park system and it set the standard for transportation systems in other 
park units.
    With the sustained growth in Alaska's tourism industry, Denali 
continues to be a featured part of travelers' itineraries. To better 
manage the park experience in light of increased pressures, the 1986 
General Management Plan (GMP) for the park established a limit of 
10,512 motor vehicle trips annually on the park road. This limit, which 
affects the existing allocation of vehicle trips (among tour buses, 
shuttle buses, private vehicles, administrative vehicles, and private 
inholders and their guests) will be comprehensively evaluated in this 
EIS. The transportation system enabled Denali to maintain vehicle use 
levels below this figure while providing visitors the opportunity to 
travel the park road. However, visitation continues to increase and 
demand exceeds capacity in some cases. Trends indicate that visitation 
will continue to increase and that there will continue to be a demand 
for access to Denali. There is also a need to accommodate the changing 
demographics, interests, and needs of visitors. This will require a 
comprehensive review of the current system and evaluation of 
alternatives for developing a system to better serve the needs of 
visitors while protecting park resources.

    Dated: June 20, 2008.
Victor Knox,
Acting Regional Director, Alaska.
 [FR Doc. E8-18571 Filed 8-11-08; 8:45 am]
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