Public Encouraged to Comment by April 28
Kristin Bail, forest supervisor of the U.S. Forest
Service National Forests in North Carolina, today announced that the agency has
begun the next phase of revising the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests Land and
Resource Management Plan (the Forest Plan).
“We’ve
received a large number of comments from the public since the assessment for
the Plan began in the fall of 2012, and we’re hoping that trend will continue
as we move into the next phase of plan revision,” said Bail. “I encourage
anyone interested in the two national forests to submit comments on the Notice
of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement by April 28, 2014.”
The plan
development phase officially began with publication of a Notice of Initiation,
which was published in the Federal Register on Oct. 3, 2013. This next
phase involves beginning the work on the Environmental Impact Statement that
will accompany the development of the revised plan. The public has 45 days to
comment on the Notice of Intent, the Preliminary Need for Change and the
Proposed Action, which was published in the Federal
Register on March 12, 2014.
Comments
or questions about plan revision can be sent by email to NCplanrevision@fs.fed.us. For those who prefer regular mail, written comments can
be mailed to National Forests in North Carolina, Nantahala and Pisgah Plan
Revision, 160 Zillicoa St. Suite A, Asheville, NC 28801.
The
Notice of Intent (NOI) states that the Forest Plan will be revised to address
direction within the current management plan that is in need of change. The NOI
includes a summary of these preliminarily identified needs for change; a more
extensive Preliminary Need For Change document is available on the plan
revision website. Comments submitted by the public over the past year
helped the Forest Service identify these preliminary needs for change. Among
many other topics, the Preliminary Need for Change recognizes the important
role that the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests play in sustaining the
forests of western North Carolina and supporting local economies.
During
this plan development phase, the Forest Service, with input from members of the
public and representatives of other governmental and non-governmental
organizations, will determine the management practices necessary to accomplish
the desired goals, and the effects those practices may have on the land. The
Forest Service will then draft the proposed revised Plan and draft
Environmental Impact Statement.
“We have
seen stakeholders from all sides of the political spectrum come together over
the past year-and-a-half to help with the assessment and identify what needs to
be changed,” said Bail. “With the high level of involvement we’ve seen so far,
I am optimistic that we will meet our goal of having a new Forest Plan in place
by September 2016.”
The
Assessment Phase, the first phase of plan revision, began in Fall 2012. In
2013, the agency hosted 14 public meetings to solicit comments, opinions, data
and ideas from members of the public as well as representatives of other
governmental and non-governmental organizations. Approximately 800 people
attended the meetings, and more than 1,000 written comments were received at
these meetings, as well as by mail and email. Information gathered during the
assessment phase is compiled in an Assessment
Report and the need for change document.
Once the
Plan is completed, the monitoring phase will begin as the Plan is implemented
and will continue until the next forest plan revision. Each national forest has
a management plan that is updated about every 15 years.
The 2012
Planning Rule guides the planning process. The rule includes protection for
forests, water and wildlife, while supporting the economic vitality of rural
communities. It requires the use of the best available scientific information
to inform decisions. The 2012 rule strengthens the role of public involvement
and dialogue throughout the planning process.
More
information about the plan revision process is available online at: www.fs.usda.gov/goto/nfsnc/nprevision.
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