Arches Entrance Area Plan Available for Review

April 1, 2002 (NPS): An environmental assessment (EA) on the proposed new visitor center and entrance road at Arches National Park is available for public review and comment.

The National Park Service (NPS) is proposing to build a new, larger visitor center and parking area in the vicinity of the current visitor center, to better accommodate current and future levels of visitation. The park is also proposing to relocate the entrance road, moving the Highway 191 intersection (toward Moab) to a safer location on a straight section of highway. This would increase the length of the entrance road and the queuing capacity, alleviating the problem of lines of cars extending back to the highway.

The current visitor center was built in 1959. Since then, annual park visitation has increased from 60,000 to over 800,000, resulting in crowding, long waits at the information desk, and difficulty finding parking spaces, particularly during popular times. The current visitor center has inadequate space for visitors, exhibits, offices and administrative functions.

Traffic on U.S Highway 191 has multiplied as well since the construction of the current park entrance road. The current intersection between the entrance road and the highway is on a curve at the base of a long hill, which presents safety hazards. At current park visitation rates, lines of cars waiting to pass through the entrance station sometimes extend back the entire length of the entrance road and on to the highway.

The environmental assessment is available from the Southeast Utah Group office at 2282 South West Resource Boulevard, Moab, and is posted on this Web site. Comments may be submitted to Superintendent Jerry Banta at the same address, or by the Internet at cany_resource_management@nps.gov. The deadline for comments is May 1, 2001.

Green River Overlook Plan Available for Review

February 27, 2002 (NPS): An environmental assessment (EA) on the Green River Overlook and Willow Flat Campground area, in the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands National Park, is available for public review and comment.

The National Park Service is proposing to make minor realignments and pave the existing gravel access road and parking lot for the overlook, install a new vault toilet and accessible concrete walkway at the overlook, and pave the existing Willow Flat campground road and parking pads. The existing facilities are not adequate for the increased level of visitation to the overlook and campground area. The existing roads suffer from problems with drainage, stopping sight distance, and dust. The nearest available toilet to the overlook is currently at the campground, approximately one-fourth mile away, and access to the overlook for individuals with physical disabilities is difficult.

In order to resolve these problems and provide for future demands, the park has proposed an action and developed an EA for the Green River Overlook and Willow Flat area. The EA assesses the impacts of the proposed action and alternatives.

The environmental assessment is available on this web site. Copies are also available from the Southeast Utah Group office at 2282 South West Resource Boulevard, Moab, Utah 84532. Comments may be made to Superintendent Jerry Banta at the same address, or by e-mail at cany_resource_management@nps.gov. The deadline for comments is April 4, 2002.

2002 Budget & Performance Plan

January 7, 2002 (NPS): Southeast Utah Group Superintendent Jerry Banta today announced that the park’s annual performance plan and documents providing details about the appropriated budget and fee revenues for FY2002 are available for public review as required by the National Parks Omnibus Management Act of 1998.

Highlights of the Canyonlands budget, which funds specific goals in the annual performance plan, include:

$1,739,220 for resource preservation and management which includes funding for natural and cultural resource management, visitor and resource protection, and search and rescue operations. An additional $35,200 in estimated concession franchise fee revenues retained by the park will be used in the development of a river management plan and to monitor camping along the river corridor. $151,334 in retained fee revenues will be used for stabilizing archeological sites, removing graffiti from rock art, bighorn sheep management, and archeological surveys.

$731,160 to address visitor services including interpretive programs, operation of the park visitor centers, and outdoor education. $400,100 in estimated fee revenues will be used to fund the costs of fee collection and related fee management activities, develop an accessibility plan, rehabilitate the campground pay stations in the Needles District, and fund the operation of the Backcountry and River Reservation Office. $140,000 in estimated concession franchise fees will be used for emergency medical services, concessions evaluations, and to support the river patrol operation.

$1,512,560 for facility operations and maintenance including building and utilities maintenance, road repairs, and the trail maintenance program. $533,997 in estimated fee revenues will address the radio system, the trails program, and perform numerous road projects including road striping at Island in the Sky, roadside vegetation control parkwide and rehabilitating the ditch lines in the Needles.

$1,099,060 for park management and administration which includes the superintendent’s immediate office and the administrative functions for all four parks of the Southeast Utah Group (Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, Hovenweep and Natural Bridges National Monuments). Contracting and property management, personnel, budget support, telecommunications, and computer services are all included within administration.

Copies of the complete annual performance plans for Canyonlands National Park, prepared in accordance with the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), are available by writing to 2282 S. West Resource Boulevard, Moab, Utah 84532. The plans may also be downloaded from this Web site.

The goals described in the park’s annual performance plans are derived from the 2001-2005 National Park Service Strategic Plan, which establishes a performance management process for the Service and incorporates the requirements of GPRA. The Strategic Plan is available on the NPS home page at www.nps.gov.

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