Table Of Content

National Park Service U.S. Departmentofthe Interior Zion National Park Utah 2lo*4 J **-«*< V r J Zion National Park General Management Plan Zion National Park Utah Produced bythe Denver Service Center National Park Service U.S. Department ofthe Interior Washington, DC uMPM PARK SERVICb WATER RESOURCES DIVISION FORT COLLINS, COLORED RESOURCE ROOM PROPERTY Summary Thepurposeofthisplanistodescribethe whilenewresearch natural areascovering6% of generalpaththe National Park Serviceintendsto theparkwillbe designated. Interimgroupsize followin managingZion National Parkoverthe limitsand newinterimgroup encounterrates next20years. willbe instituted pendingthe completion ofthe wildernessmanagementplan. Parkmanagers The planwillprovideaframeworkforproactive mayneedtolimitorreducevisitornumberson decision makingon such issuesasvisitoruse, 12trailsand routesintherecommendedwilder- naturaland cultural resource management,and ness, includingpartoftheNarrows, MiddleFork park development,whichwillallowpark man- ofTaylorCreek,andLaVerkin Creek. Only agersto effectivelyaddressfutureproblemsand authorizedresearchand NPS-guided educa- opportunities. In mostcases,newdevelopment tionalgroupswillbeallowed in 9,031 acresin outside the parkwilltakeplaceto meetvisitor remotebackcountryareas (including needs. Parunuweap Canyon) duetotheirdesignationas research naturalareas. Park managerswill make several changesto proactivelyaddressimpactsresultingfrom The National ParkServicewill proposefive increased levelsofvisitoruse.The parkwillbe BureauofLand Management (BLM) areas,total- zonedtoensurethatresourcesareprotectedand ingapproximately950acres, fortransfertothe opportunitiesareprovided forarangeofquality park. Nine accesseasements,totalingabout15 visitorexperiences. Mostofthe park (90%) will miles,andthree conservationeasements,totaling continuetobe recommended forwildernessdes- 2,220acres,will be proposedonprivate lands ignationandwillbe managed accordingto the outside thepark. Congressionalauthorization provisions oftheWildernessAct. In the front- willberequiredforall theseactions. countryno newmajorvisitorfacilitieswillbe provided; however,smallvisitorfacilities,suchas Five drainagesand theirtributaries inthepark picnicsitesandrestrooms,maybebuiltinsev- and sixtributarieson BLM landsadjacenttothe eralareas,includingthe KolobCanyonsandthe parkwillbe included inthe nationalwildand eastentrance. Voluntaryvisitorshuttles mayrun scenicriverssystem.Thefive drainagesinthe alongtheZion-Mt. CarmelHighwayto the east parkare: the North ForkoftheVirgin River entrance.TheZionCanyon Lodgewill continue aboveandbelowtheTemple ofSinawava,the tooperateasithasinthepast. Partofthe North EastForkoftheVirgin River, NorthCreek,La ForkoftheVirgin RiverinthemainZion VerkinCreek,andTaylorCreek.The drainages Canyonwillbe restored toamorenatural condi- partlyon BLMlandsare: KolobCreek,Goose tion. Creek,ShunesCreek,WillisCreek,Beartrap Canyon,andtheMiddle Fork ofTaylorCreek. Inthebackcountryseveral managementactions Congressional authorizationwillbe requiredfor willbetaken.Threeexistingresearchnatural inclusionofthesedrainages inthenationalwild areas (21% ofthepark) willbedeauthorized, and scenicriverssystem. National ParkService iii MMfei -v * 1 Contents Foundation for the Plan Maps Purpose of and Need for a Plan 1 Location 4 Purposes, Significance, and Missions Goals 5 Areas of Relative Inaccessibility 29 Park Policies and Practices 6 Zoning 41 Primary Planning Issues and Concerns 21 Recommended Wilderness and Land Status 47 Issues to be Addressed in Future Plans 25 Park Boundary Adjustment and Adjacent Landownership 51 Wild and Scenic Rivers 55 The Plan Introduction 28 Summary of the Management Zones 32 Tables General Management Strategies 35 1. Proposed Classification of Rivers 57 Zoning and Related Actions 40 2. River Mileage and Landownership of Suitable Boundary Adjustments and Easements 50 Rivers 82 Proposals for wild, Scenic, and Recreational River Designation 54 Implementation 58 Appendixes/Bibliography Appendixes A: RecordofDecision 6 B: StatementofFindings forFloodplains 67 C: Definitions ofthe ManagementZones 69 D: SummaryofResearch NaturalAreas 77 E: WildandScenic RiverEvaluation 80 F: Legislative Historic forZion NationalPark 83 G: SummaryofKeyLegal Mandates 84 Bibliography 86 National ParkService v I Purpose of and Need for a Plan Asoneof384unitsinthe nationalparksystem, toaddressvisitorcarryingcapacity. One ofthe Zion National Park isunderthemanagementof primarypurposesofthisplanistomeetthis the National ParkService (NPS).The Park requirement. Carryingcapacityis definedunder Servicemanagesallparkunitsinaccordance thevisitorexperienceand resourceprotection withthe mandatein its1916 OrganicActand (VERP) frameworkasthetypeand levelof otherlegislationto conserveresourcesunim- visitoruseaparkcanaccommodatewhilesus- paired forthe enjoymentoffuturegenerations. tainingresourceandsocialconditionsthat To helpachievethismandate,theNational Parks complementthepurposes oftheparkand its and RecreationActof1978andNPS managementobjectives. In otherwords, carrying ManagementPolicies (NPS2001) requireeach capacityisaprescriptionforthelevelsofvisitor national parkunitto haveabroad-scalegeneral usein relationtovariousnatural resource and managementplan (GMP). visitorexperienceconditions.Tosetupaframe- workforaddressingcarryingcapacity,thepark Thepurposeofthis GeneralManagementPlanis wasdivided intozonesthatdescribe differing todescribethegeneralpaththe National Park desired resource conditionsandvisitorexperi- Serviceintendstofollowin managingZion ences. (Notethatto fullyimplementthe VERP National Park overthe next 20years.Theplan framework,afollow-up implementationplanis doesnotprovidespecificand detailedanswers neededto identifykeysocialand natural toeveryissueorquestion facingZion. However, resourceindicatorstobe monitored in eachof theplandoesprovideaframeworkforproactive thepark'szones,setstandards [minimum decisionmakingon suchissuesasvisitoruse, acceptable conditions] foreachindicator,and naturaland cultural resourcemanagement,and developamonitoringprogram.) parkdevelopment,whichwillallowparkman- agersto effectivelyaddressfutureproblemsand Inadditionto meetingtherequirementsfor opportunities. addressingvisitoruse management,park man- agers neededthisnewplantoaddress other Manychangeshaveoccurred in Zion National issuesandconcernsthathaveariseninthepast Park, inthesurroundingarea,and inparkman- two decades.Theseissuesincludethoserelated agementsinceZion'slastmasterplanwas toresearchnaturalareas (RNAs) (i.e.,areas approved in 1977. In particular,parkvisitation administrativelydesignatedbyfederal land man- hasgrown dramatically,withvisitoruselevels agementagencies forresearchandeducational doublingbetween 1982and 1997.Thisincreasein purposesortomaintainbiological diversity), use hasaffected park resourcesandthediversity noise,and land usesadjacentto thepark. With ofvisitorexperiencesoffered inZion.TheZion mostofZionrecommended forwilderness Canyonshuttlesystemalso has changedthe designation,the Park Servicealsoneedsthisnew visitorexperience inthepark.Anewplan is plantoaddresshowthisdesignationwillaffect essentialforprovidingguidancetomanage park management (e.g.,changesinparkzoning). Zion'svisitorsinthe21stcentury,andthus Finally,anewplanpresentsan opportunityfor ensurethepreservationofparkresourcesand parkmanagersto exploreand recommend other provisionofopportunitiesforvisitorstohave changesrelatedtomanagingZion,suchaspro- qualitypark experiences. posingboundaryadjustmentsandwildand scenicriverdesignations. BoththeNational ParksandRecreationActand NPSpolicies requiregeneral managementplans National ParkService 1 Planning Assumptions Several fundamental assumptions underpin the GeneralManagementPlan. These assumptions are con- sidered "givens" for howthe park is managed in the future. • Existing major developments in the park will remain, although theirfunctions maychange. Park staff will continueto maintain the Zion-Mt. Carmel Highway, between the south and east entrances ofthe park, which will remain opened tothrough (i.e., nonrecreational commuter) traffic. • The National Park Service will not build newfacilities, such as campgrounds, lodges, roads, and full- service visitor centers, within the park, aside from those associated with the transportation system. It is assumed thatthe private sector will provide lodging and camping facilities outsidethe park. • The National Park Service will continueto operatethe Zion Canyon shuttle system, as described in the 1997 Canyon Transportation System EnvironmentalAssessment. • Park managerswill adjusfstaffing levelsto reflectthe increase in workloads. 2 Zion National ParkGeneralManagementPlan Brief Description of the Park Located in Washington, Iron, and Kane Counties in southwestern Utah, Zion National Park encompasses some ofthe most scenic canyon country in the United States (see the Location map). The park is charac- terized by high plateaus, a maze of narrow, deep, sand-stone canyons, and striking rock towers and mesas. Zion Canyon isthe largest and most visited canyon in the park. The North Fork ofthe Virgin River has carved a spectacular gorge here, with canyon walls in most places rising 2,000to 3,000 feet above the canyon floor. The southern part ofthe park is a lower desert area, with colorful mesas bor- dered by rocky canyons and washes. The northern sections ofthe park are higher plateaus covered by forests. Zion is one ofthe earliest additionsto the national park system. On July 31, 1909, PresidentTaft issued a proclamation setting aside 15,200 acres asthe Mukuntuweap National Monument. In 1918 another presidential proclamation enlarged the monumentto 76,800 acres and changed its nameto Zion National Monument. Congress established the area as a national park in 1919. A second Zion National Monument (now called the Kolob Canyons) was established by presidential proclamation in 1937. Congress added the Kolob Canyonsto Zion National Park in 1956. The park currently encompasses 148,016 acres. An additional 3,490 acres of private inholdings are present in the KolobTerrace area, on the west side ofthe park. (The inholding acreage and all ofthe other park acreage figures included in this document are based on geographic information system (GIS) calculations. These figures may not correspond with legal description acreages.) Zion is part ofthe Southwest's "Grand Circle" of national parks, monuments, historical areas, and recreational areas. Visitors reach the park via Interstate 15, which provides accesstothe Kolob Canyons area, and Utah Route 9. Zion is 158 miles northeast of LasVegas and 320 milessouthwest ofSalt Lake City. The town of Springdale is lessthan a mile from the park's south entrance. Other nearbytowns include Kanab (41 milesfrom the Zion Canyon Visitor Center), St. George (43 miles), and Cedar City (60 miles). National Park Service 3