Notice of Availability of Record of Decision for Merced River Comprehensive Management Plan, Yosemite National Park, California

摘要

Pursuant to Sec. 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (Pub. L. 91-190, as amended) and the regulations promulgated by the Council on Environmental Quality (40 CFR 1505.2), the Department of the Interior, National Park Service (NPS), has prepared and approved a Record of Decision for the Final Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIS) for the Merced River Comprehensive Management Plan. Approval of the Merced River Comprehensive Management Plan culminates an extensive conservation planning and environmental impact analysis effort which began over 15 years ago. The requisite no- action "wait period" was initiated on February 18, 2014, with the Environmental Protection Agency's Federal Register notice of the filing of the Final EIS. Decision: The NPS has selected Alternative 5 (identified as both "agency preferred" and "environmentally preferred" in the Final EIS) for implementation as the approved Merced River Comprehensive Management Plan. Under the selected alternative, peak visitation could reach levels experienced in recent years--approximately 20,100 people per day in East Yosemite Valley. West Yosemite Valley will retain its overall natural character, with