Fire Management Plan

The National Park Service proposes implementing National Park Service Director�s Order 18 (1998) by establishing a fire management plan for Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve. This fire management plan is a comprehensive document and outlines Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve�s fire management goals and describes the policies and actions by which these goals will be realized. The plan will formalize the fire management decision-making process and the procedures that have been in place for over 15 years, redefine fire management strategies, establish the park�s fire management organization and responsibilities, and relate resource management goals to fire management strategies. With the implementation of the proposed action, fire management within Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve will remain status quo and the on-the-ground application of the fire management strategies will continue as in the past.

This plan is necessary for the management of wildland fire at Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve which is potentially complex. Fire poses a potential threat to life and property as well as cultural and historic resources in and around the Park/Preserve. At the same time, however, fire has long been an integral component of the area�s ecosystems and is critical for the maintenance of virtually all native conditions, from plant and animal populations to soil and permafrost layers. Accordingly, the scope of the preferred alternative and other considered alternatives entails the planning and implementation of policies and practices flexible enough to allow the simultaneous pursuit of protection and resource management goals.