Pea Ridge NMP Vegetation Management Plan Environmental Assessment

Pea Ridge National Military Park was established by Congress to "preserve and protect the landscapes and resources associated with the Battle of Pea Ridge" and "interpret the battle as an integral part of the social, political and military history of the Civil War." The Park's General Management Plan (GMP), completed in 2006, set the goals for landscape management at the park. The overarching goals of the GMP were "returning the battlefield landscape to the 1862 appearance" and "provide views of the battlefield that convey the open space and woodlands present at the time of the battle."

The landscape of Pea Ridge was a highly human modified landscape in 1862. The major purpose of this plan is to design ways to adjust and/or establish the vegetation patterns that represent the look and feel of the 1862 landscape. The Park proposes the development of a Vegetation Management Plan to establish methods by which to create and then maintain those patterns to maximize benefits to the natural and cultural resources. As part of this effort, the NPS is preparing an Environmental Assessment (EA) for an evaluation of alternatives for the Vegetation Management Plan. The plan will look at a variety of treatment options to replicate the vegetative conditions existing in 1862 from farm fields and pastures to forested areas.

Contact Information

Kevin Eads
Chief of Resource Management
15930 US Hwy 62 East
Garfield, AR. 72732

kevin_eads@nps.gov