Web govnotes.com

Other GovNotes on Art, Copyright and Internet topics!



Topics:

Denali National Park and Preserve

Special Regulations

National Park Service

SUMMARY: For the portion of Denali National Park and Preserve formerly known as Mount McKinley National Park (the Old Park) only, this rule establishes a definition for ``traditional activities'' as the term is used in Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) section 1110(a) and related Department of the Interior regulations. The rule also applies this definition and determines that, for the Old Park only, prior to the enactment of ANILCA, no traditional activities took place during periods of adequate snow cover for which snowmachines (snowmobiles) may now be used. In addition, the rule implements the June, 2000 Statement of Finding: Permanent Closure of the Former Mt. McKinley National Park Area of Denali National Park and Preserve To The Use of Snowmachines and determines that any snowmachine use in the Old Park would be detrimental to the resource values of the area. The rule also consolidates, expands and codifies certain designations, closures and permit requirements for Denali National Park and Preserve, including requirements for vehicular traffic, vehicle use limits, and public health and safety. The rule also replaces the out-of-date references to ``Mount McKinley National Park'' with the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act name ``Denali National Park and Preserve.'' EFFECTIVE DATE: July 19, 2000. ADDRESSES: Superintendent, Denali National Park and Preserve, PO Box 9, Denali National Park, AK 99755. Attention: Ken Kehrer, Jr. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ken Kehrer, Jr. at the above address or by calling 907-683-2294. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background

As used in this Rule, the term ``Old Park'' means the portion of Denali National Park and Preserve that was formerly known as Mount McKinley National Park. This Rule incorporates [[Page 37864]] all the information in the Environmental Assessment for Permanent Closure Of the Former Mount McKinley National Park to Snowmachine Use, the Finding of No Significant Impact for the Proposed Permanent Closure of the Former Mount McKinley National Park to Snowmachine Use, the Statement of Finding: Permanent Closure of the Former Mt. McKinley National Park area of the Denali National Park and Preserve to the Use of Snowmachines and the Final Cost-Benefit analysis: Denali National Park and Preserve Special Regulations.

In 1903, United States Geological Survey geologist Alfred Brooks wrote: ``* * * the abundance of sheep, bear, moose and caribou found along the north slope of the Alaska Range rank it as one of the finest hunting grounds in North America.'' In 1917, to protect and preserve natural and scenic resources and for public enjoyment and recreation, Congress directed that Mount McKinley National Park ``shall be, and is hereby established as a game refuge.'' 39 Stat. 938. Congress expanded the Park in 1922 and 1932. Horace Albright, the National Park Service (NPS) Director, welcomed these additions, in part, as a means to better protect wildlife, particularly to improve protection of Dall sheep and moose in the Park by giving them additional winter range protection. House Committee on the Public Lands, Report 207, Letter of January 20, 1932.

In 1980, Congress passed the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA), which enlarged Mount McKinley National Park and renamed it Denali National Park and Preserve (Pub. L. 96-487, Dec. 2, 1980, 94 Stat 2371). Consistent with the 1917 Act that created the Park, ANILCA recognized the importance of protecting habitat for, and populations of, fish and wildlife. The legislative history of ANILCA states that certain NPS units in Alaska, including ``Mount McKinley [National Park] * * * are intended to be large sanctuaries where fish and wildlife may roam freely, developing their social structures and evolving over long periods of time as nearly as possible without the changes that extensive human activities would cause.'' Sen. Rep. No. 96-413, 96th Cong., 1st Sess. 137 (1979); and, Cong. Rec. H10532 (Nov. 12, 1980). The heart of the Park and preserve lies on the lands that once comprised Mount McKinley National Park (the Old Park); there, on lands that ANILCA designated as Wilderness, predator-prey relationships have functioned for decades without significant human interference.

Under NPS management for the past 83 years, the wildlife and the wilderness have remained virtually unchanged. It is the human recreational element that has undergone a dramatic evolution. During the summer of 2000, the National Park Service (NPS) expects that over 400,000 people will visit the Old Park. Nevertheless, like Alfred Brooks, they will see an abundance of sheep, bear, moose and caribou, and the occasional wolf, against a spectacular backdrop of pristine, subarctic, alpine landscape--taiga and tundra, glaciers, glacier-fed rivers and cathedral peaks. The health of this shielded ecological system is also the cornerstone of a multimillion-dollar tourism industry in Alaska which is very dependent upon the presence of this diverse wildlife along the Denali road corridor.

Limiting motor vehicle use on the Denali Park Road, educating backcountry users and prohibiting snowmachine use in the Denali wilderness have been essential factors in maintaining the natural systems in the Park interior, and in providing continued outstanding visitor experiences; experiences that depend, in large part, on seeing the spectacular variety of wildlife along the Park road and the opportunity to observe natural predator-prey interactions. The wildlife populations in the Old Park are available for this unparalleled viewing opportunity precisely because they have been protected from intrusive interactions with humans for decades. Vehicle use of the road corridor beyond certain levels has been determined by NPS to displace the wildlife that can be seen from the road and otherwise disrupts the Park's ecosystems, thereby impairing the resources, values and purposes for which the Park was established.

During the difficult interior Alaska winters, any increase in stress on the wildlife through added energy expenditure or loss of preferred habitat is a concern. The braided river valleys and the high open tundra of the Old Park leave little opportunity for wildlife to avoid intrusions and take refuge. Any snowmachine use in the Old Park would result in detriment to the resource values of the Old Park and a significant change from the long-standing patterns of non-intrusive human interaction with wildlife. A major change in the level and extent of human activity in this historically undisturbed winter environment would be detrimental to many animals over a large area. The possibility of many additional miles of snowmachine trails and increased snowmachine activity levels throughout the Old Park threatens all types of habitat. This area of previously protected habitat is particularly vulnerable to increased disturbance given its proximity to access points along the George Parks Highway. In the long term, preserving the Old Park wilderness and its continually evolving natural processes is essential to ensuring opportunities for outstanding resource-based visitor experiences.

The historical limitations on motorized use have also created a unique wilderness recreation opportunity in Alaska. There is no other comparably sized, naturally regulated ecosystem in Alaska that has been as protected from motorized use during winter months. As a result, the resource values of solitude and natural quiet, which are the source of this opportunity, remain at exceptional levels during the winter and are enjoyed by skiers, mushers, snowshoers and winter campers.

The NPS Organic Act of 1916 directs NPS to manage National Parks and Monuments to ``* * * conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.'' 16 U.S.C. 1. ANILCA section 1110(a) provides that snowmachine use may be prohibited if such use would be detrimental to the resource values of the unit or area. Additional information upon which NPS relied is found in the June, 2000 Statement of Finding: Permanent Closure of the Former Mt. McKinley National Park Area of Denali National Park and Preserve To the Use of Snowmachines. In that Finding NPS concluded that any snowmachine use in the Old Park would be detrimental to the resource values of the area and that snowmachine usage for travel to and from villages and homesites and for traditional activities did not occur. That Finding is available from the superintendent or on the Denali National Park and Preserve web page at www.nps.gov/dena. Administrative History of ANILCA Section 1110(a), Special Access for Snowmachines National Park Service Rulemakings

On December 2, 1980, President Carter signed ANILCA into law. On January 2, 1981, NPS published a proposed rule (46 FR 5642). The purpose of the proposed rule was ``* * * to harmonize the statutory directives [of ANILCA] with existing [national monument] regulations [[Page 37865]] * * *'' and ``* * * to provide public guidance as soon as practicable.'' Id. According to the rule, expeditious rulemaking was needed to, among other reasons, address new directives in ANILCA such as section 1110(a) access. NPS regulations then in effect, generally prohibited aircraft and snowmachine use in Parks. Id. NPS described the proposed regulations as those minimally necessary to provide proper management in Park areas in Alaska and noted that further comprehensive rulemaking would follow. Id.

The proposed rule stated that: ``* * * [s]ections 13.10-13.12 would initially open all Park areas to access by snowmachine, aircraft and motorboat for any purpose.'' Id. at 5644. The proposal sought to reduce the need for persons to obtain individual access permits and distinguished between recreational uses and traditional activities:

Sections 13.10-13.12 of these proposed regulations initially open all Park areas in Alaska to access by snowmachine (on areas with adequate snow cover or frozen rivers), motorboat, and aircraft, without the need for individual access permits. Access by these methods of transportation is authorized for any purpose (e.g. travel between villages, to a homesite, for mineral development, for recreation, or for traditional activities except as is specifically provided for subsistence uses in ss 13.45 and 13.46 discussed below under subsistence. Sections 13.10-13.12 implement section 1110(a) of the Alaska Lands Act which provides access for ``traditional activities * * * and for travel to and from villages and homesites.'' This approach extends the statutory concept to access for all purposes, except the special provisions concerning access for subsistence uses.'' Id., (emphasis added).

Under the corresponding access section for subsistence users (13.46), the proposal noted:

At all times when not engaged in subsistence uses, local rural residents would be able to use snowmachines, motorboats, and other means of surface transportation [sic] in accordance with the appropriate Subpart A regulations. For example, local rural residents engaged in recreational uses of snowmachines, motorboats, and other means of surface transportation would comply with the provisions of ss 13.10, 13.11, and 13.13, respectively, and local rural residents seeking otherwise-closed access to Inholdings or temporary access would comply with the provisions of ss 13.14 and 13.15, respectively. Id. at 5654, (emphasis added).

This explanation was repeated in the final rulemaking (46 FR 31836, 31852). It is instructive to note that, from the beginning, the authors of the rule distinguished recreational activities from traditional activities. On June 17, 1981, NPS published the final rule (46 FR 31836). The preamble to the rule also noted that:

A substantial number of comments (203) objected to making these regulations applicable to all Park areas in Alaska (see ss 13.1(m), 13.2), including pre-ANILCA areas like the former Mt. McKinley National Park and Katmai and Glacier Bay National Monuments. The proposed regulations were viewed by these commentors as an unwarranted lessening of protective measure for these ``old'' Park areas. Id. at 31837.

NPS concluded that there was no basis under the statutory language to exclude the Old Park from the conservation system units subject to section 1110(a).

NPS agreed with comments made that the findings required by Executive Order 11644 would not allow a general opening for snowmachine use--thus the final rule limited snowmachine use to the uses enumerated in section 1110(a), while allowing motorboats, airplanes and non- motorized surface transportation means to be used for any purpose. Executive Order 11644 requires that off-road vehicle use, including that of snowmachines, must be limited to specific areas and trails that: minimize damage to soils and vegetation; minimize harassment of wildlife or significant disruption of wildlife habitat; and minimize conflicts with, and danger to, other existing or proposed recreational uses. Furthermore, snowmachine use was not to be authorized in designated Wilderness Areas, and could be authorized in areas of the National Park system only if it would not adversely affect natural, aesthetic or scenic values. Consequently, the final rule authorized snowmachine use during periods of adequate snow cover or frozen river conditions only for traditional activities and village to village travel that were still permitted in park areas. The final rule provided two examples of uses that were not authorized, because the land use was no longer permitted in parks: snowmachine use to locate new mining claims and sport hunting. The rule also cautioned that ``* * * [p]rospective snowmachine users should note that the legislative history of section 1110(a) defines a traditional activity in terms of a use generally occurring in a park area prior to its designation. See S. Rep. No. 96-413, supra at 248; H. Rep. No. 96-97, Part 1, supra at 239.''

On April 6, 1983, NPS proposed regulations that would have effectively closed much of the Old Park to snowmachine and other motorized uses (48 FR 14978). The proposed rule noted that ``* * * [o]ne of the primary purposes for establishing Denali National Park and Preserve was to provide protection to certain species of wildlife and their habitats * * *'' ``Motorized use of certain areas of Denali National Park is believed to be detrimental to its ecosystem and the values for which it was established.'' Id. William P. Horn, then Deputy Under Secretary of the Interior announced the proposal by stating:

The proposed regulations * * * would correct an oversight in the 1980 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA). When Congress enacted Section 1110(a) of ANILCA it opened all units of the vastly expanded conservation system to snowmachine * * * use. Prior to ANILCA, the critical wildlife habitat and natural resource areas of [Mount McKinley were] essentially closed to motorized access. Congress inadvertently opened [Mount McKinley] to this kind of use. By re-establishing the historical public use restrictions, the National Park Service seeks to correct the action and restore the historical level of resource protection. Department of the Interior, News Release, April 6, 1983.

The April 6,1983 proposal was never adopted in a final rule. Department of the Interior Rule Making

On July 15, 1983, the Department of the Interior proposed regulations that would implement portions of ANILCA Title XI that had not been promulgated by any of the bureaus. The rule also proposed to repeal and replace the bureaus' various special access, temporary access and access to inholdings regulations, to codify all Title XI regulations in a single part. These regulations essentially mirrored NPS and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) regulations that generally tracked the language of ANILCA section 1110(a). The proposed rule would authorize snowmachine use during periods of adequate snow cover or frozen river conditions only for traditional activities that were still permitted in Park areas, and for travel to and from villages and homesites, pursuant to an access permit, and for subsistence purposes. The rule also proposed a definition for ``adequate snow cover.''

On September 4, 1986, the Department of the Interior published final regulations implementing ANILCA Title XI. Following the precedent established by NPS and FWS, the proposed regulations on motorboat, aircraft and nonmotorized surface transportation access were not restricted to traditional activities and travel to and from villages and homesites, as in the statutory authorization. In the final rule, the Department noted that EO 11644, regarding off-road vehicles (ORV), does [[Page 37866]] not apply to motorboats or aircraft. Therefore, the Department exercised its discretion under other applicable statutes in order to authorize airplane and motorboat use beyond that mandated in ANILCA. The fact that the Department did not limit airplane and motorboat access to only traditional activities under section 1110(a) demonstrates that traditional activities are a distinct subset of all the legally permissible activities that may occur in a Park area consistent with its enabling legislation.

The Department again also declined to endorse comments that supported a blanket exception from the provisions of 1110(a) for the parks and monuments that predated ANILCA.

The argument is made that Congress did not intend to open the pre-ANILCA areas to the uses described in Section 1110(a), since these pre-ANILCA areas had been closed to such uses prior to the enactment of ANILCA. Interior does not find any statutory support for this position, since Section 1110(a) provides no exception for the pre-ANILCA areas. Accordingly, no exception for pre-ANILCA areas is provided for in these regulations.'' Id. (emphasis added).

While the statutory language must be read to apply to the Old Park, NPS and the Department continue to believe that the Department's 1983 characterization is correct, and that inclusion of the Old Park was inadvertent.

The Department also declined to accept comments to define ``traditional activities,'' even though, under the regulations, snowmachines are limited to use for traditional activities and travel to and from villages and homesites. The Department noted that: ``* * * [o]ne suggestion was made that the regulations should limit access to traditional activities to the means traditionally employed, and should define what those means are.'' Id. at 31626, (emphasis added). The Department chose to neither reject nor accept this suggestion. Instead the Department stated that:

Because these regulations apply to a number of areas under the administrative jurisdiction of three agencies, it has been decided that it would be unwise, and perhaps impossible to develop a definition that would be appropriate for all areas under all circumstances. Exactly what ``traditional activities'' are must be decided on a case-by-case basis. Once the agencies have had the opportunity to review this question for each area under their administration, it may be possible to specifically define ``traditional activity'' for each area. Accordingly, these regulations do not contain a definition of ``traditional activity.'' Id. Denali National Park and Preserve 1986 General Management Plan

In the 1986 General Management Plan (GMP) for Denali National Park and Preserve, NPS followed the suggestion in the 1986 regulations for the development of area specific definitions of ``traditional activity'' (GMP, page 195). The GMP also indicated that recreational snowmachining can be treated as either a means of access or as a distinct activity in and of itself. The GMP identified recreational snowmachining as a distinct activity that needed to be evaluated against the definition of traditional that was provided in the GMP in order to determine if it was a traditional activity within the Old Park (GMP, page 37). This definition was not incorporated into regulation, but the Old Park was closed for 19 years to this activity by way of Superintendent's Orders (Compendium) based on an interpretation that recreational snowmachining was not a traditional activity in the Old Park. Denali National Park and Preserve: 2000 Final Rule

Under Section 1110(a) of ANILCA, snowmachines may be used in conservation system units for traditional activities, unless a particular traditional activity is barred by ANILCA or other applicable law, and for travel to and from villages and homesites. The use of snowmachines for such purposes may not be prohibited unless, after notice and hearing in the vicinity of the affected unit, it is determined that such use ``would be detrimental to the resource values'' of the unit.

There are no villages, homesites and other valid occupancies within the Old Park. Access by snowmachine through the Old Park in transit to homesites, villages and other valid occupancies did not lawfully occur prior to ANILCA and is available through routes outside the Old Park that have been historically used for that purpose, both prior to and since the enactment of ANILCA. Thus, no snowmachine use within the Old Park is authorized by Section 1110(a) or 43 CFR 36.11(c) for travel to and from villages, homesites and other occupancies.

Consumptive use as stated in the final rule definition of ``traditional activity'' was derived by the Department after careful review of the legislative history of ANILCA. The four specific examples found in that history are sport hunting, fishing, trapping and berry picking. In the context of the proposed rule, NPS requested specific information on other activities which the public felt might be traditional activities. Based on its review of the comments, NPS has not identified any other consumptive activities in the Old Park which are traditional activities under the adopted definition.

The definition of traditional activities in this final rule differs from the November 12,1999 proposed rule definition in two main ways. First, the application of the final rule definition is limited. The final rule definition is for the Old Park only, while the proposed definition was a general definition that would have applied to all the NPS units in Alaska. This is because the public comments indicated there was some confusion over the applicability of the definition to other than the Old Park. NPS also believes that further consideration of the definition in the context of the other park areas in Alaska is needed before a definition applicable to them is promulgated due to the possibility of different historical use patterns in those areas.

Second, the final rule definition is now clearer about what NPS considers to be traditional activities in the Old Park. The revised definition clearly states that traditional activities are related to consumptive use, and that recreational snowmobiling is not a traditional activity in the Old Park. These changes are described in further detail below. Because the meaning of the phrase ``utilitarian Alaska lifestyle'' was not clear to many commentators we have replaced it with language which we believe accomplishes the same purpose, but defines the term traditional activity in a manner that is more readily understood by the public.

The November 12,1999 proposed rule suggested the following definition of a traditional activity for NPS units in Alaska: An activity that generally and lawfully occurred in a unit or a geographically defined area of a unit prior to enactment of ANILCA, and that was typically associated with that region as an integral and established part of a utilitarian Alaska lifestyle or cultural pattern.

This final rule adopts the following definition of a traditional activity for the former Mount McKinley National Park portion of Denali National Park and Preserve:

An activity that generally and lawfully occurred in the Old Park contemporaneously with the enactment of ANILCA, and that was associated with the Old Park, or a discrete portion thereof, involving the consumptive use of one or more natural resources of the Old Park such as hunting, trapping, fishing, berry picking or similar activities. Recreational use of snowmachines was not a traditional activity. If a traditional activity [[Page 37867]] generally occurred only in a particular area of the Old Park, it would be considered a traditional activity only in the area where it had previously occurred. In addition, a traditional activity must be a legally permissible activity in the Old Park.

As a general definition for all NPS units in Alaska, and under which an area-by-area analysis would be done, the proposed definition of traditional activities generally received widespread support. However, in reviewing the public comment, NPS realized that the proposed definition was not entirely clear; accordingly, NPS has made several clarifying changes in the final definition. To produce a more understandable definition, the description ``involving the consumptive use of one or more natural resources of the Old Park such as hunting, trapping, fishing, berry picking or similar activities'' has been added consistent with the legislative history which uses these examples of traditional activities for purposes of section 1110(a). This consumptive use is part of a life style or cultural pattern that remain practical and essential components of subarctic life. Clarification that the recreational uses of snowmachines (such as picnicking, sightseeing, wildlife viewing, photography and camping) were not traditional activities in the Old Park has been added. Although non- snowmobile based recreational activities did take place in the Old Park these activities were not the type of activities offered during the Congressional deliberations as the traditional activities to be preserved. Clarification that a traditional activity that only took place in a portion of the Old Park is a traditional activity only in the area where it generally occurred has also been added. After analysis and consideration of the public comments, NPS has decided to define and apply this definition only to the Old Park at this time. NPS intends to define traditional activities and apply such definitions to other park areas, including the remainder of Denali National Park and Preserve, in subsequent processes, such as future rulemakings to implement backcountry management plans for some of the national parks in Alaska.

NPS emphasizes that the definition of traditional activities in this rule is applicable to the Old Park only. NPS could develop and apply a different definition of traditional activities for the remainder of Denali National Park and Preserve and other Alaska Parks, based on historical use patterns for those areas. While NPS has found that certain activities did not occur in the Old Park during periods of adequate snow cover, and has developed and applied in this rule the definition of traditional activities for that area only, NPS could find differently for other NPS areas. NPS notes that the use of the Old Park may be distinct as compared to the ANILCA established portions of the Alaska Park units, due to the use restrictions that have been historically applied to the Old Park.

NPS has previously provided separately for snowmachine use for subsistence activities under 36 CFR 13.46, but subsistence is not authorized in the Old Park.

Applying this park specific definition to the Old Park, NPS is unable to identify any traditional activities or travel to and from villages, homesites and other valid occupancies during periods of adequate snow cover. In response to the request for comments regarding the identification of traditional activities within the Old Park, NPS received no comments that identified a history of any traditional activities as defined in this rule legally taking place contemporaneous with the enactment of ANILCA. The NPS has additionally concluded that any snowmachine use in the Old Park would be detrimental to the resource values of the area. Accordingly, NPS has inserted in the regulations for the Old Park only, that snowmachine use is not permitted for any reason within the Old Park portions of Denali National Park and Preserve.

The legislative history of ANILCA contains several examples of traditional activities: sport hunting; fishing; berry picking; trapping. The House and Senate Committee Reports that accompany ANILCA list the first three of these activities as examples of traditional activities. Trapping was discussed as a traditional activity during Senate mark-up. The Committee Reports state that if traditional uses were generally occurring in an area prior to its designation the uses shall be allowed to continue. NPS notes that hunting, fishing, berry picking and trapping share a common characteristic; they are all consumptive, resource gathering activities. Congress sought to specially protect access for these activities (where the activities were authorized by ANILCA or other law) within areas that were being created to protect natural resources. Section 1110(a) was drafted to address Congressional concern that many Alaskans who practiced these kinds of activities would not qualify as subsistence users under Title VIII and therefore would not qualify for snowmachine access under section 811(b). Section 1110(a) was adopted to provide similar access for consumptive activities to these non-qualifying members of the public.

With respect to the Old Park, NPS is certain that Congress did not expressly intend and did not create, an exception to the Wilderness Act that would allow snowmachines in wilderness areas--because someone on the snowmachine intended to look around, or happened to be carrying a sandwich or disposable camera--or because non-motorized sightseeing, picnicking and photography were permissible in the Old Park prior to ANILCA. If a contrary interpretation were correct, Congress need not have linked snowmobile access to traditional activities, but would have allowed it for any purpose since virtually any use of the Park entails an element of sightseeing. Such an interpretation would render the term ``traditional activities'' as the equivalent of ``for any purpose''. NPS has found no evidence of such intent in the legislative history.

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resource mark-up sessions that were the origin of this section, and the Committee Reports on the Act consistently reference traditional hunting, fishing and berry picking. Congress did not identify other activities, such as recreational activities, in deliberations on section 1110(a). Conversely Congress made its intent clear in other provisions of ANILCA, specifically opening conservation system units to recreation by authorizing such access specifically, and separately from access for traditional activities. See e.g., section 201(2) Bering Land Bridge National Preserve (``in a manner consistent with the foregoing [the preserve shall be managed] for public access for recreational purposes to the Serpentine Hot Springs area.''); section 202(5) Kenai Fjords National Park (``the Secretary is authorized to develop access to the Harding Icefield and to allow use of mechanized equipment on the Icefield for recreation.''); section 202(6) Kobuk Valley National Park (``the Secretary shall permit aircraft to continue to land at sites in the upper Salmon River watershed.'') and section 202(10) Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve (``the Secretary shall permit aircraft to land on sites in the upper Charley River watershed'').

With respect to the authorization of landing sites in the upper Salmon and Charley River watersheds, amendments approved at the October 10, 1979 Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources mark-up struck the phrase ``traditionally used for such purposes'' from the end of each sentence. The amendments put a period after the word ``watershed''. The accompanying mark- [[Page 37868]] up colloquy explains the Committee's intent to authorize access beyond where and what was traditional in these two areas due to their high potential for compatible recreational use.

As the Alaska Conservation Foundation commented:

[T]he only mention of recreational use in the ``Purposes'' section of ANILCA states that the intent of Congress was ``to preserve wilderness resource values and related recreational opportunities including but not limited to hiking, canoeing, fishing and sport hunting.'' Unquestionably, recreational snowmachining is not a recreational opportunity that related to wilderness resource values. (Section 101(b)). The other purposes outlined in Section 101 are either antithetical to recreational snowmachining or are in no way supportive of recreational snowmachining.

With respect to Section 1110(a) and the term ``traditional activities'', first and foremost, it is instructive to consider the explanatory title for the section, which is ``Special Access and Access to Inholdings.'' Congress expected this section to only apply to ``special'' access situations--which are, by definition ``distinguished by some unusual quality, being other than the usual.'' Therefore, Congress limited access to these areas, allowing intrusions only for ``traditional activities'' or for access to homesites and villages.

NPS also notes that due to the distance that may be traveled by modern snowmachines and the resulting noise impacts, even only a few snowmachines would cause detriment to the special resource values of the Old Park, in particular the wilderness and wildlife values of the Old Park. These values have developed over time as a result of the unique management history of the area, and are therefore coincident with the boundaries of that former unit. See Statement of Finding, June, 2000. Dated: June 7, 2000. Donald J. Barry, Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.







Copyright © 2006 - 2008 by Andrew J. Morris and Patrick C. Robbins