Draft General Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement: Oregon Caves National Monument

330 Pages·1997·19.4 MB·English

by  National Park Service

-ys
OR DRAFT
^ 1 29.79/3: 3/2/
Oregon Caves
Monument
National
Draft General Management Plan
and Environmental Impact Statement
December
1997
Photograph and Illustration Credits
Oppositeinsidecoverpagebehindquote:PhotographofTownsend'sbig-earedbatbyMerlinTurtle,BatConservationInternational,
AustinTexas.
AllillustrationsoncoverandchapterdividerpagesbyartistLindaM.Feltner,Seattle,Washington.
1995 photoofBuckPeakonpage 112 byRobertBrothers,Ashland,Oregon.
Printedonrecycledpaper
Soybasedinks
pJ^UCDbCJUMENTS"
^PfPOSlTORY
ITEM
4 1998
MSON
I he Klamath-Siskiyou Bioregio *RY
ofNorthern California andSouthern
Oregon is one ofthe wildestplaces left on the West
Coast ofthe UnitedStates. It is also one ofthe least
—
appreciated wildplaces perhaps because its
treasures are more hidden than the wonders
ofa Yosemite or a Yellowstone.
David Rains Wallace
The Klamath Knot
1983
Townsend's Big-earred Bat
{Plecotus town
o.
i
CO
o
I
CD
Wo
kvh\\mo"2i oitncS\jtaO m3t\V\oW\p
usW ato wo i\s\ %&hA<\UsV>Y\w sto\o sno z\ i\o^*\0
taos\ sj\*\o ss\o ttt\b z\ \\ .latafctaYm\3 si\V\o VtooO
vmow sto noi\\ NsbViA $*\om sno v^*us?:cm\
.awoVwioWaX » no atimsioX o\o
sobIIbW enieil biveQ
lonA AtonvaVAart!
£8QI
Townsend's Big-earred Bat
{Plecotus townsendii)
This historic photo shows the Oregon Caves Chateau picturedon the left and the Chalet at center.
Draft General Management Plan
Draft Development Concept Plans
Draft Environmental Impact Statement
for
Oregon Caves National Monument
Prepared by
U.S. Department ofthe Interior
National Park Service
Four alternatives have been examined in this draft Oregon CavesNationalMonument General
ManagementPlan andEnvironmentalImpactStatement. They respond to bothNational Park Service
planningrequirements and to the issues identified during the scoping process. The alternatives are
characterized as follows: 1) Alternative A is the "No Action Alternative" which means a continuation ofthe
presentcourse ofaction, ormaintenance ofthe status quo ofexisting policies and programs; 2) Alternative B
is the"Minimum Requirements Alternative" and describes those minimum actions, consistent with the
purpose ofthepark, that are required forthe safe and effective operation ofthe park; 3) Alternative C is the
proposed action and"Preferred Alternative;" itemphasizes enhanced protection ofthe Monument resources
and visitorexperiences; and 4) Alternative D emphasizes increased visitor services and recreation
opportunities combinedwith increasedwatershed protection.
These alternatives address visitoruse and the preservation ofthe natural and cultural resources that provide
the environment in which the Oregon Caves story is presented to the public. One ofthese alternatives,
Alternative C, constitutes the proposed action and the PreferredAlternative oftheNational Park Service and,
ifapproved, will become the general management plan forthe Monument.
The proposed action enhances visitorexperiences through park ranger-led tours ofthe cave, development of
an on-site visitorcenter through the adaptive reuse ofan existinghistoric property, establishmentofa cave
tourreservation system, and enhancement ofa system ofnon-motorized trails in a protected forest setting.
The proposed action also provides for increased protection ofthe Monument's cave hydrology, surface forest
environment and public water supply through a proposed 3,310 acre addition to the Monument. This would
be accomplished through a transferofSiskiyouNational Forest land to theNational Park Service. Legislation
would be required to implement this aspectofthe proposal. In addition, the draft general management plan
and environmental impact statement contains twodevelopment concept plans: 1) Administrative Site
Development Concept Plan, and 2) Parking and Entry Area Development Concept Plan.
Theenvironmental consequences oftheproposed action and other alternatives are fully disclosed in the
environmental impact statement. Also included are the results ofinitial public involvement, and consultation
and coordination. For further information contact the Superintendent, Oregon Caves National Monument,
19000 Caves Highway, Cave Junction, Oregon; telephone: [phone].
Written comments concerning this draft general management plan andenvironmental impact statement
should be sentto the Superintendent at the above address by March 13, 1998.
Summary
This document is a draftgeneral management plan and environmental impact statement for Oregon Caves
National Monument. The plan provides National Park Service management with the necessary
framework to guide the management ofthe Monument for the next 15 years. The plan is intendedto be a
useful long-term decision-making tool, providingNational Park Service managers with a logical and trackable
rationale fordecisions about the protection and public use ofMonument resources.
In 1907, four sections ofland, encompassing approximately 2,560 acres were withdrawn for study forthe
purposes ofestablishing the Monument. Twoyears later, a 480 acre Monumentwas established by
proclamation ofPresident William H. Taft. In 1978, eight additional acres were arthorized in the community
of Cave Junction forpurposes ofdeveloping a visitor information center. Only fourwere added to the
Monument, bringing the total Monument acreage to 484 acres. The Monument also utilizes an 80 acre
administrative site within the SiskiyouNational Forestwhich is provided to theNational Park Service under
interagency agreementwith the U.S. Forest Service.
At the beginningofthe planning process, a series ofpublic scoping meetings were held to present the purpose
and significance ofthe Monument to the public, to outline Monument mission goals, and to present issues
that will be addressed in the plan. Input was solicited from the public and othergovernmental agencies to
discern ifthere were other issues that needed to be addressed in the plan which were not initially listed.
Among the issues brought up during the public scoping process were the protection ofcave ecology and
surrounding forest resources, the protection ofarea watersheds and the public water supply, the adequacy of
the existing boundary to protect resources, the current mannerofinterpretation ofthe cave to the public, and
the adequacyofpresentvisitor services and facilities.
In response to these issues, and cognizantofthe mission goals established for the Monument, the draft
general management plan provides four alternative approaches forthe protection, public use and management
ofMonument resources.
Alternative A is the "No Action Alternative.'' Alternative A would involve a continuation ofexisting
conditions, including retention ofconcession-contracted services forcave tours, lodging, food service and gift
sales. No boundary change would be included under Alternative A, and no change to current administrative
facilities would be forthcoming. The Monument would continue to be open to cave tours year-round.
Alternative B serves as the "Minimum Requirements Alternative" to initiate those minimum actions
necessary to protect the natural and cultural resources ofthe Monument and protect the health and safety of
the public. Included in Alternative B would be development ofadequate administrative and collection storage
in the Chateau. Cave tours would be operatedwith National Park Service interpretive guides underthis
alternative, and a cave tourreservation system would be established and based at the Illinois Valley Visitor
Center. UnderAlternative B, protection would be provided to the Lake Creek and upper Cave Creek
watersheds, the public water supply, and foreground and middleground viewsheds as seen from the
Monument through the delineation ofa 3,310 acre protected area within the Siskiyou National Forest under
cooperative agreement with the National Park Service. The cave would be open to public use from mid-March
to early December under this alternative. However, no concession lodging, dining or gift sales would be
provided at the Monument under this alternative. The lower level ofthe Chalet would be used for an on-site
Monument visitorcenter.
Alternative C constitutes the "Preferred Alternative." Alternative C would provide adequate administrative
and collection storage at the administrative site. As with Alternative B, cave tours would be operated with
National Park Service interpretive rangers underthis alternative and a cave tour reservation system would be
established and based atthe Illinois Valley Visitor Center, which would continue to serve as a key point for
initial visitorcontact and information. UnderAlternative C, protection would be provided to the Lake Creek
andupper Cave Creek watersheds, the public watersupply, and foreground and middleground viewsheds as
seen from the Monument through the transfer of 3,310 acres to the Monument from the SiskiyouNational
Forest. Additional hiking and otherrecreational opportunities would be provided to the public, and public
vehicular access would be maintainedto adjacent national forest lands. The cave would be open to public use
from mid-March to early December underthis alternative. Concession provided lodging, food service and gift
sales would continue underthis alternative, andwould be located at the Chateau. The use ofthe lower level of
the Chalet wouldbe converted from the current concession operated gift shop to the Monument visitorcenter
and staffed withNational Park Service and cooperating association employees.
Alternative D develops a new on-site visitorcenterwhich would provide interpretative services to thepublic.
Concession lodging, food service and gift sales operations are retained at the Chateau and Chalet respectively.
The cavewould be open to the public on ayear-round basis, and cave tours would be conducted by anon-
profit institute or similar association under this alternative. Like Alternative C, Alternative D would provide
adequate administrative and collection storage at the administrative site, and the Illinois Valley Visitor Center
would be used for initial visitororientation, visitorcontact, and cave tour reservations. Protection ofthe Lake
Creek and upper Cave Creek watersheds, the public water supply and foreground viewshed would be
accomplished through a transferof2,373 acres to the Monument from the Siskiyou National Forest. In
addition, protection ofportions ofthe middleground viewshed would be accomplished by the establishment of
a 937 acre protected area within the SiskiyouNational Forest through a cooperative agreement between the
National Park Service andU.S. Forest Service.
Actions common to all alternatives include the continued rehabilitation ofthe cave trail, the continued use of
the Illinois Valley Visitor Center forvisitor orientation and information, protection ofthe Oregon Caves
Historic District, and ongoing regional cooperation on various issues such as fire management and tourism.
A summary chart ofactions foreach alternative is included in the document.
;;/