Project Links
Cuyahoga Valley Deer Management Plan/EIS
Cuyahoga Valley National Park » Cuyahoga Valley Deer Management Plan/EIS » Document List
The National Park Service has signed the Record of Decision (ROD) approving a plan to address the issues associated with excessive deer numbers and over-browsing at Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP) in order to protect park resources.
The ROD for CVNP's Final White-tailed Deer Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement (final plan/EIS) formally adopts as the selected action, Alternative D, which was identified as the NPS preferred alternative in the final plan/EIS. Under the selected action, the NPS will continue current park deer management actions, including research and monitoring, protection of restoration plantings, and enforcement of the existing wildlife feeding ban. In addition, the NPS will incorporate a combination of lethal and nonlethal actions to address high deer densities. Lethal actions (including sharpshooting, with very limited capture/euthanasia (if necessary)) will be taken initially to quickly reduce deer densities. Population maintenance will follow the initial reduction, and could be conducted by nonsurgical reproductive control methods, if an acceptable agent is available, or by sharpshooting. Both maintenance methods are included in the selected action to maintain maximum flexibility for future management.
Implementation of the plan will not begin until a Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision is published in the Federal Register, which is expected to occur in the next two months. At this time deer management operations are not anticipated to begin until late in 2015.
To download a copy of the ROD, click on the "Document List" link on the left side of this page.
Thank you for your continued interest in Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
The ROD for CVNP's Final White-tailed Deer Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement (final plan/EIS) formally adopts as the selected action, Alternative D, which was identified as the NPS preferred alternative in the final plan/EIS. Under the selected action, the NPS will continue current park deer management actions, including research and monitoring, protection of restoration plantings, and enforcement of the existing wildlife feeding ban. In addition, the NPS will incorporate a combination of lethal and nonlethal actions to address high deer densities. Lethal actions (including sharpshooting, with very limited capture/euthanasia (if necessary)) will be taken initially to quickly reduce deer densities. Population maintenance will follow the initial reduction, and could be conducted by nonsurgical reproductive control methods, if an acceptable agent is available, or by sharpshooting. Both maintenance methods are included in the selected action to maintain maximum flexibility for future management.
Implementation of the plan will not begin until a Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision is published in the Federal Register, which is expected to occur in the next two months. At this time deer management operations are not anticipated to begin until late in 2015.
To download a copy of the ROD, click on the "Document List" link on the left side of this page.
Thank you for your continued interest in Cuyahoga Valley National Park.