83 FR 19817 - Notice of Availability of the Saline Valley Warm Springs Draft Environmental Impact Statement at Death Valley National Park, California and Nevada

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 87 (May 4, 2018)

The National Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of the Saline Valley Warm Springs Draft Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement (plan/DEIS).

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 87 (Friday, May 4, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19817-19819]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-09440]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-ANRSS-24195; PPWONRADE2, PMP00EI05.YP0000]


Notice of Availability of the Saline Valley Warm Springs Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement at Death Valley National Park, 
California and Nevada

AGENCY:  National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION:  Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY:  The National Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of 
the Saline Valley Warm Springs Draft Management Plan and Environmental 
Impact Statement (plan/DEIS).

DATES:  The NPS will accept comments on the plan/DEIS for a period of 
60 days following publication of the Environmental Protection Agency's 
(EPA) Notice of Availability of the plan/DEIS in the Federal Register. 
After the EPA Notice of Availability is published, the NPS will 
schedule public meetings to be held during the comment period. Dates, 
times, and locations of these meetings will be announced in press 
releases and on the plan/DEIS website for the project at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/SalineValleyWarmSprings.

ADDRESSES:  You may send comments by any of the following methods:
     NPS Planning, Environment and Public Comment website: 
http://parkplanning.nps.gov/SalineValleyWarmSprings.
     Mail or Hand Delivery: Superintendent Mike Reynolds, Death 
Valley National Park, Death Valley National Park, P.O. Box 579, Death 
Valley, CA 92328.
For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional 
information, see the ``Public Participation'' and ``How to Comment'' 
heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Please contact Superintendent Mike 
Reynolds, Death Valley National Park, Death Valley National Park, P.O. 
Box 579, Death Valley, CA 92328, or by telephone at 760-786-3243. 
Information is available online for public review at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/SalineValleyWarmSprings.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  This process is being conducted pursuant to 
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) 
and the regulations of the Department of the Interior (43 CFR part 46). 
The purpose of this plan/DEIS is to develop a

[[Page 19818]]

management strategy for the Saline Valley Warm Springs area that will 
complement the Death Valley National Park General Management Plan 
(GMP). This plan/DEIS is being developed in cooperation with the 
Timbisha Shoshone Tribe, Inyo County, and the Bureau of Land 
Management.
    Saline Valley is a large desert valley located in the northwest 
portion of Death Valley National Park. The National Park Service has 
defined the warm springs area of Saline Valley as approximately 100 
acres of back country surrounded by wilderness. It has not been 
formally or systematically developed for use by the National Park 
Service but does have a number of user developed and maintained 
structures and facilities.
    The plan/DEIS is intended to provide a framework at the Saline 
Valley Warm Springs area for: natural and cultural resources 
management; administration and operations; and managing visitor use. It 
is intended to provide guidance for Death Valley National Park managers 
as they work with various stakeholders and promote the partnership 
between the park and the Timbisha Shoshone Tribe to ensure the Saline 
Valley Warm Springs area is protected and enhanced by cooperative 
activities.
    Action is needed to implement the GMP and address visitor use and 
development at the Saline Valley Warm Springs area. Past visitors of 
the warm springs area have altered the natural aspect of the area 
through diversion of water from the natural warm springs and through 
construction of soaking tubs and other amenities. The warm springs area 
is also part of the Timbisha Shoshone Natural and Cultural Preservation 
Area, and the ethnographic uses by the Tribe and recreational uses by 
other visitors can be in conflict.
    This plan/DEIS evaluates the impacts of the no-action alternative 
(Alternative 1) and four action alternatives (Alternatives 2, 3, 4, and 
5).
    Alternative 1 would continue existing management practices and 
assume no new management actions would be implemented beyond those 
available at the outset of this planning process. The users, with help 
from the volunteer camp hosts, would continue to informally oversee the 
recreational uses of the warm springs area and visitors would continue 
to be able to use the Chicken Strip airstrip, soaking tubs and 
associated facilities as they currently exist.
    Under all action alternatives, the park would enforce existing laws 
and policies and continue to cooperatively manage the area with the 
Timbisha Shoshone Tribe pursuant to the Timbisha Shoshone Homeland Act 
of 2000. The NPS could create a no cost registration for all overnight 
guests. In addition, each action alternative includes some type of 
fencing, dependent on archeology surveys and consultation, as a means 
of excluding feral burros from the source springs.
    Under Alternative 2, the NPS would retain much of the existing use 
of the warm springs but bring the actions and conditions into 
compliance with NPS, state, and federal regulations. The NPS would 
consult with the Office of Public Health to develop an approach for 
water quality monitoring, add signs at sinks to inform visitors of non-
potable water, add filtration systems for discharged water at the 
dishwashing stations, and make the facilities accessible to the extent 
possible. The NPS would also take steps to restore the natural and 
cultural environments of the warm springs by controlling nonnative 
plant species, removing user-created fire rings, and requiring visitors 
to haul out ash and charcoal.
    Alternative 3 aims to involve user groups more formally in the 
cooperative management of the area. The user groups would be engaged 
through agreements to identify and carry out many of the actions needed 
to protect natural and cultural resources, protect human health and 
safety, and maintain visitor facilities. This alternative would employ 
the same human and health and safety measures as alternative 2 and 
would involve the installation of artistic fences to protect areas from 
feral burros. Increased resource protection measures would be 
implemented including additional nonnative vegetation control, the 
potential use of food storage boxes, and removing the diversion piping 
from Burro Spring. Camping would be restricted to designated camping 
areas and no camping would be allowed within 200 feet of the source 
springs or Chicken Strip.
    Under alternative 4, the NPS would restore the warm springs, as 
closely as possible, to a natural condition with minimal or no 
development. Tubs and associated infrastructure would be removed, as 
would dishwashing stations, showers, vehicle support facilities, 
airstrip, and vault toilets. Dispersed camping could continue but no 
camping would be allowed within 200 feet of all water sources. The park 
would remove nonnative plants and restore native habitats, in addition 
to installing fencing around warm springs area at the wilderness 
boundary to prevent access by feral burros.
    Alternative 5, the preferred alternative, seeks to encourage 
cooperative management between the park and user groups while 
protecting natural and cultural resources and allowing for continued 
recreational visitor use. Alternative 5 is the same as alternative 3 
except for several aspects. Under alternative 5, camping would be 
allowed at the Chicken Strip airstrip and additional tiedowns could be 
added. Visitors that camp at the airstrip would be required to pack out 
their waste, unlike alternative 3. Under alternative 5, the park would 
not consider the installation of food storage boxes for storage of 
visitors' food items. Instead, the park would encourage proper storage 
of food through on-site and online education, the same as alternative 
2. Unlike alternative 3, which proposes to install artistic wood 
fencing to enclose soaking tubs, source springs and riparian areas, 
this alternative would install fencing around the entire developed warm 
springs area, dependent on archeology surveys and consultation. This 
would prevent feral burro access to water sources, vegetation, and 
campsites while protecting archeological resources along the wilderness 
boundary.
    Public Participation: After the Environmental Protection Agency's 
Notice of Availability is published, the NPS will schedule public 
meetings to be held during the comment period near the park. Dates, 
times, and locations of these meetings will be announced in press 
releases and on the NPS Planning, Environment, and Public Comment 
website for the Draft EIS at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/SalineValleyWarmSprings.
    How to Comment: You are encouraged to comment on the plan/DEIS 
online at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/SalineValleyWarmSprings. You may 
also mail or hand-deliver your written comments to Superintendent Mike 
Reynolds, Death Valley National Park, Death Valley National Park, P.O. 
Box 579, Death Valley, CA 92328. Written comments will also be accepted 
during scheduled public meetings discussed above. Comments will not be 
accepted by fax, email, or by any method other than those specified 
above. Bulk comments in any format (hard copy or electronic) submitted 
on behalf of others will not be accepted. Before including your 
address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying 
information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire 
comment--including your personal identifying information--may be made 
publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to 
withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we

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cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

    Dated: January 30, 2018.
Martha Lee,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific West.
[FR Doc. 2018-09440 Filed 5-3-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4312-52-P