From Staff Reports
The Montgomery Herald
GLEN JEAN — Members of the public have the opportunity to study the results of hours of scoping sessions and background work as the National Park Service’s draft General Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement (GMP) and draft Foundation Plan for New River Gorge National River have been released for public review and input.
“The draft GMP has been carefully developed so that the five alternatives reflect a range of management strategies for the stewardship of the national river over the next 15 to 20 years,” New River superintendent Don Striker said in a recent press release.
“The draft plan identifies the National Park Service-preferred alternative so the public will know which alternative we consider the best. We very much need to hear what people have to say about the plan and each of the alternatives for consideration in determining the final plan. The GMP is important because so many other planning and project documents tier from this plan. All future planning must be consistent with the intent and philosophy of the general management plan.”
In hopes of hearing from the public on the plans, a series of three meetings was scheduled for this week. The first was held yesterday (Tuesday, March 9) at Hinton from 4 to 6 p.m. in the Memorial Building auditorium. A second meeting is scheduled for Tamarack in Beckley from 3 to 6 p.m. today (Wednesday, March 10), with the final meeting set for the Canyon Rim Visitor Center in Lansing from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, March 11.
Area residents, business owners, local officials, and organizational representatives are encouraged to visit any of the public open houses.
According to Striker, one of the more controversial topics of discussion in previous planning sessions was resolved by Congress.
“Many of the comments we received during our scoping sessions were from hunters concerned about an alternative that would have banned hunting in the New River Gorge National River,” he said. “With passage of a law last year stating that there shall be hunting here, the United States Congress has clarified their intent with respect to this aspect of park operations, and all the alternatives now include hunting.”
Copies of the plans are available for public review and comment online at the park’s Web site (www.nps.gov/neri) or via the NPS Planning, Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) site at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/neri. Printed copies, in limited quantity, and CDs can be requested by calling 304-465 -6526.
Printed hard copies can be viewed at the following locations:
— New River Gorge National River Headquarters, 104 Main Street, Glen Jean;
— New River Gorge National River, Canyon Rim Visitor Center, 162 Visitor Center Road (off US 19, north of the New River Gorge Bridge), Lansing;
— New River Gorge National River, Sandstone Visitor Center, Meadow Creek Road, Sandstone;
— Raleigh County Public Library, 221 N. Kanawha Street, Beckley;
— Summers County Public Library, 201 Temple Street, Hinton; and
— Oak Hill Public Library, 611 Main Street, Oak Hill.
The draft GMP will be available for public review until April 2. Comments are welcome any time throughout the formal review period, officials say, and will be carefully considered in arriving at the final plan.
The preferred method to comment is online at www.nps.gov/neri, however, written comments may be sent to: Superintendent Don Striker, New River Gorge National River, 104 Main Street, Glen Jean, WV 25846.
