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Wilderness Stewardship Plan
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks » Wilderness Stewardship Plan » Document List
The National Park Service has completed the Wilderness Stewardship Plan / Final Environmental Impact Statement (WSP/FEIS) for Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. The final step was taken on May 27, 2015, with the signing of the Record of Decision (ROD) by the National Park Service's Pacific West Acting Regional Director Patty Neubacher.
The development of the WSP/FEIS, a multi-year process, has incorporated substantive input from the public, National Park Service and other wilderness managers, and subject matter specialists. A wide array of management options has been explored and discussed in development of the final methods and actions that will be used to protect the parks' wilderness for the next 15-20 years. The National Park Service will use the developed framework established by the WSP/FEIS and approved by the ROD to manage the parks' wilderness to meet the mandates of the Wilderness Act and other associated laws: to preserve wilderness character, to provide opportunities for and encourage public use and enjoyment of the wilderness, and to improve conditions in areas where there may be unacceptable levels of impacts on wilderness character.
The implementation of changes from current wilderness practices and restrictions—especially changes that directly affect public use—will be phased in over the next few years. Phased implementation will provide for adequate opportunities to inform the public of changes the WSP will make in public use and access in wilderness. For example, the campfire limit in the Kern River drainage is slated in the WSP to change from 10,400 ft. to 10,000 ft. For the remainder of 2015, the limit will remain at 10,400 ft. Other aspects of the WSP that will be phased in include changes in party (group) size; night stay limits at specific locations; removal of food-storage boxes; stock feed requirements; implementation of the trail classification system; and changes in commercial service procedures.
The ROD and its accompanying attachments (the mitigation matrix and determination of non-impairment) are found on this website under "Document List." To obtain a printed version of the ROD and its appendices, please contact Nancy Hendricks at 559-565-3102 or by emailing nancy_hendricks@nps.gov.
If you are interested in reading the WSP/FEIS, please view it on this website under "Document List." There are limited printed versions of the document available, and CD copies are available. To obtain a copy of the document, please contact Nancy Hendricks, environmental protection specialist, at (559) 565-3102.
Printed copies are available at area libraries in Tulare, Fresno, Kern, and Inyo counties, and at the SEKI visitor centers at Ash Mountain, Lodgepole, and Grant Grove.
Area libraries where printed copies of the WSP/FEIS are available:
•Clovis Regional Library
•Fresno County Libraries: Bear Mountain Branch; Central Branch; Fowler Branch; Kingsburg Branch; Orange Cove Branch; Parlier Branch; Reedley Branch; Sanger Branch; Selma Branch; Sunnyside Branch
•Kern County Libraries: Bakersfield - Beale Memorial Library
•Inyo County Libraries: Big Pine Branch; Lone Pine Branch; Bishop Branch
•Tulare County Libraries: Dinuba Branch; Exeter Branch; Lindsay Branch; Three Rivers Branch; Visalia Branch; Porterville Public Library
•Merced County Libraries: Merced Library
Photo of the Kearsarge Pinnacles from University Peak, by Julie Vargo, from the 2015 Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Facebook Photo Contest.
Elly Boerke, Environmental Protection Specialist
Attn: Wilderness Stewardship Plan
47050 Generals Highway, Three Rivers, CA 93271
The development of the WSP/FEIS, a multi-year process, has incorporated substantive input from the public, National Park Service and other wilderness managers, and subject matter specialists. A wide array of management options has been explored and discussed in development of the final methods and actions that will be used to protect the parks' wilderness for the next 15-20 years. The National Park Service will use the developed framework established by the WSP/FEIS and approved by the ROD to manage the parks' wilderness to meet the mandates of the Wilderness Act and other associated laws: to preserve wilderness character, to provide opportunities for and encourage public use and enjoyment of the wilderness, and to improve conditions in areas where there may be unacceptable levels of impacts on wilderness character.
The implementation of changes from current wilderness practices and restrictions—especially changes that directly affect public use—will be phased in over the next few years. Phased implementation will provide for adequate opportunities to inform the public of changes the WSP will make in public use and access in wilderness. For example, the campfire limit in the Kern River drainage is slated in the WSP to change from 10,400 ft. to 10,000 ft. For the remainder of 2015, the limit will remain at 10,400 ft. Other aspects of the WSP that will be phased in include changes in party (group) size; night stay limits at specific locations; removal of food-storage boxes; stock feed requirements; implementation of the trail classification system; and changes in commercial service procedures.
The ROD and its accompanying attachments (the mitigation matrix and determination of non-impairment) are found on this website under "Document List." To obtain a printed version of the ROD and its appendices, please contact Nancy Hendricks at 559-565-3102 or by emailing nancy_hendricks@nps.gov.
If you are interested in reading the WSP/FEIS, please view it on this website under "Document List." There are limited printed versions of the document available, and CD copies are available. To obtain a copy of the document, please contact Nancy Hendricks, environmental protection specialist, at (559) 565-3102.
Printed copies are available at area libraries in Tulare, Fresno, Kern, and Inyo counties, and at the SEKI visitor centers at Ash Mountain, Lodgepole, and Grant Grove.
Area libraries where printed copies of the WSP/FEIS are available:
•Clovis Regional Library
•Fresno County Libraries: Bear Mountain Branch; Central Branch; Fowler Branch; Kingsburg Branch; Orange Cove Branch; Parlier Branch; Reedley Branch; Sanger Branch; Selma Branch; Sunnyside Branch
•Kern County Libraries: Bakersfield - Beale Memorial Library
•Inyo County Libraries: Big Pine Branch; Lone Pine Branch; Bishop Branch
•Tulare County Libraries: Dinuba Branch; Exeter Branch; Lindsay Branch; Three Rivers Branch; Visalia Branch; Porterville Public Library
•Merced County Libraries: Merced Library
Photo of the Kearsarge Pinnacles from University Peak, by Julie Vargo, from the 2015 Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Facebook Photo Contest.
Contact Information
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National ParksElly Boerke, Environmental Protection Specialist
Attn: Wilderness Stewardship Plan
47050 Generals Highway, Three Rivers, CA 93271