MEDIA RELEASE

Time period for public input extended for Hawai‘i Volcanoes general management plan and wilderness study

2011 Lava Lake Halema‘uma‘u Crater. Image Courtesy USGS

The National Park Service is extending the deadline for public comment on four preliminary alternatives that detail a future vision for the park. As part of an on-going effort to develop a General Management Plan and a Wilderness Study and Environmental Impact Statement (GMP/Wilderness Study/EIS), written and on-line comments will continue to be received through the fall. Federal law requires formal publication of a notice in the Federal Register detailing the park’s intent to expand the scope of the project to include the Wilderness Study. Once this notice is published, the public will be notified on park and project websites of the exact deadline for the end of the comment period.

The GMP/Wilderness Study will document a management vision for the entire park, including Kahuku, and serve as a guidebook for the future. The NPS has included a wilderness study to analyze whether NPS-managed lands within the park should be recommended for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System. As part of this added scope of the project, additional public input related to wilderness is being requested during review of the preliminary alternatives.

The preliminary alternatives developed by the park planning team are based on previous public comments, federal law and NPS policy, as well as the professional knowledge of park staff. The alternatives detail a menu of topics including conservation of the park’s natural resources and cultural significance, location of visitor and operations facilities, new or connecting trails, sustainable and climate-friendly operations, education, research, and visitor access and services at the Kahuku Unit. Wilderness eligible lands in Kahuku are also discussed.

A newsletter describing the preliminary alternatives and wilderness study is available on the park web site at www.nps.gov/havo/parkmgmt/gmp.htm or at Hawaii Island libraries.

There are several ways to submit comments including filling out a comment form available in the newsletter, submitting comments on-line through a link on the National Park Service Planning, Environment and Public Comment site, http://parkplanning.nps.gov/havo or by mailing comments to: Cindy Orlando, Superintendent, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, PO Box 52, Hawaii National Park, HI 96718-0052.