[RodF]

Public Invited to Review Next Steps in Draft Olympic National Park Wilderness Stewardship Plan Plan Applies Only to Park Wilderness Area Designated in 1988 The National Park Service has released a range of preliminary draft alternatives for the Olympic National Park Wilderness Stewardship Plan. The preliminary draft alternatives were designed to reflect key topics raised during the initial public scoping process last spring. “The public’s review and comment at this key stage of the planning process will ensure that we are developing the best possible future for the Olympic Wilderness,” said Olympic National Park Superintendent Sarah Creachbaum. “Moreover, we want to ensure that we have accurately heard and addressed the public’s comments as we move forward in developing the plan.” This planning process applies only to lands within Olympic National Park and when complete, will guide the preservation, management and use of the park’s wilderness area. “In accordance with the Wilderness Act of 1964, the goal of this wilderness stewardship plan is to restore, protect and enhance the overall wilderness character of the wilderness area within Olympic National Park,” Creachbaum emphasized. The preliminary draft alternatives and maps, along with extensive background information and a copy of the public comments submitted during last year’s public scoping period, can be reviewed online at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/olymwild. Comments may also be submitted at that website. Six public workshops will be offered and are scheduled as follows. Tuesday, March 18, 2014 5:00-7:00pm Port Angeles Library 2210 S. Peabody Street Port Angeles, WA 98362 Phone: 360-417-8500 Wednesday, March 19, 2014 5:00-7:00pm Department of Natural Resources 411 Tillicum Lane Forks, WA 98331 Phone: 360-374-2800 Monday, March 24, 2014 5:00-7:00pm Cotton Building 607 Water Street Port Townsend, WA Phone: 360-379-4412 Wednesday, March 26, 2014 5:00-7:00pm Quinault Lake School Amanda Park, WA 98526 Phone: 360-288-2260 Tuesday, April 1, 2014 5:00-7:00pm Civic Center (Meeting Room 1) 525 W. Cota Street Shelton, WA 98584 Phone: 360-426-4441 Thursday, April 3, 2014 5:00-7:00pm Seattle Public Library Wright/Ketcham Room; Level 4, Room 2 1000 4th Avenue, Seattle, WA Phone: 206-386-4636 Public comments may also be mailed or delivered to: Superintendent Sarah Creachbaum Attn: Wilderness Stewardship Plan Olympic National Park 600 East Park Avenue Port Angeles, WA 98362 Ninety-five percent of Olympic National Park was designated as wilderness in 1988, and is part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. The Wilderness Act of 1964 established the National Wilderness Preservation System and established a policy for the protection of wilderness resources for public use and enjoyment. For more information or to be added to the Olympic National Park Wilderness Stewardship Plan, people should visit http://parkplanning.nps.gov/olymwild or call the park at 360-565-3004. Olympic National Park News Release March 12, 2014

[RodF]

See Preliminary Draft Alternatives - ONP Wilderness Stewardship Plan to view or download the newsletter, details on the alternatives, or to comment through May 17, 2014. Note that the Draft Plan will be issued for comments in about a year, and the final plan later in 2015. Update May 2015: Draft now expected in early 2016, Final in late 2016. Update April 2017: Draft delayed by Wilderness Watch lawsuit, now expected fall 2017.

[RumiDude]

Looks like Alternative B would make ONP more like NCNP. I will make a huge effort to be at the metting next week in PA. Rumi

[reststep]

Thanks for posting this Rod. Do you know which plan OPA is in favor of or are they against all of them?

[NacMacFeegle]

Both alternatives B and C would have a negative effect on historic structures, trail maintenance and visitor experience. D would be acceptable, but I would prefer the no-action alternative.

[RumiDude]

[reststep]

I think I am leaning toward the no-action one also. Actually my preference would be that it had not been made a wilderness area in the first place. I think being a national park offered the area all the protection it needed. Who was behind making it a wilderness area? Did OPA have anything to do with it?

[RodF]

[NacMacFeegle]

[trestle]

Just say NO to Alternative B.

[ranger rock]

Whoo hooo April fools day in Shelton..

[ranger rock]

[Skookum Bill]

With regard to ONP having Wilderness status, it plays a key role in checking development in a long wild area from the well meaning plan of a maintenance supervisor to the self-aggrandizing monument of a well-connected superintendent. I will offer this example: There was another resort that met its fate when Mother Nature played free. Quoting from ONP's Historic Reource Study:"The final demise of the Low Divide Chalet came during the winter of 1944. A snow avalanche caused by winter storms completely demolished the main lodge building and the cabins (NARS:RG 79 ca. 1944a, n.d.). But prior to that: "The stockholders of the Olympic Chalet Company contemplated further development of the Quinault drainage. In 1929 the company proposed building an airplane landing field at Low Divide. The Forest Service, who saw the project's potential enhancement of recreational values and fire fighting capabilities in the area, seriously considered the plan (NFS ONF 1929, 18 February). The same year Olympic Chalet Company officials gave fleeting consideration to damming a glacial stream in Martin's Park above Low Divide to create a lake for use as a landing place for a hydroplane (NFS ONF ca. 1929, 18 April). In the early 1930s the Olympic Chalet Company sought financial support for constructing an aerial tramway from Quinault Lake to the top of Mount Baldy (NFS ONF 1933, n.d.). None of these projects were carried out." In this case, one can surmise that the double whammy of the Great Depression followed by a world war curtailed these plans. And the avalanche finished it off. And for all of that I am thankful.

[contour5]

I'm intrigued by the permitting process listed in version "D".

[trestle]

For such drastic changes, the amount of public comment time/sessions is very limited.