General Management Plan
|
CRATERS of the MOON
General Management Plan |
|
PARK EXPANSION
Legislation has been introduced in Congress for the creation of a large national park consisting of the present Craters of the Moon National Monument plus extensive lands adjacent to the monument that are administered by the BLM. The National Park Service prepared the Reconnaissance Survey: Expansion of Craters of the Moon National Monument (NPS 1989b) to evaluate the expansion proposals. This General Management Plan deals only with management of the existing monument. Should any significant expansion occur by Congressional act, an amendment to this plan would be required.
ADJACENT WILDERNESS PROPOSALS
The National Park Service is not seeking any additional wilderness designation for areas in the existing monument, but the BLM has recommended several nearby areas for wilderness designation: the Great Rift Wilderness Study Area, which is adjacent to the Craters of the Moon Wilderness on the west, south, east, and northeast, and the Raven's Eye and Sand Butte wilderness study areas, both southwest of but not adjacent to Craters of the Moon National Monument. Congress has taken no action to date on any of these recommendations.
A designated wilderness in the BLM Great Rift area would be a logical extension of the designated wilderness in the monument, and such designation would enhance the wilderness values of the entire area. In the 1970 Act creating the Craters of the Moon Wilderness, a strip of land along the boundary was excluded from wilderness designation as a buffer zone next to the adjacent nonwilderness area. If the BLM Great Rift area is designated wilderness, that strip of nonwilderness land along the boundary should be eliminated.
PROJECTS WITH IDAHO NATIONAL ENGINEERING LABORATORY
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, which is east of Arco, operates a radionuclide monitor within Craters of the Moon National Monument. A contract with Idaho State University in Pocatello allows the university to duplicate the laboratory's efforts as a check. In conjunction with the monument and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, INEL also operates a meteorological station that monitors wind speed and direction.
In cooperation with the monument, INEL has installed a seismic monitor on the northwestern boundary of the monument and installed a recording seismograph in the visitor center for interpretation. The monitor is tied into a larger seismic network operated by the laboratory. Craters of the Moon and INEL have entered into an agreement to monitor nitrous oxides at a facility within the monument to be constructed by the Department of Energy. Craters of the Moon also assists in collection of thyroid glands from road-killed deer to be tested for radioactive contamination.
POTENTIAL SPECIAL DESIGNATIONS
The low sagebrush/Idaho fescue habitat of the north unit and the early low sagebrush/Idaho fescue habitat in Carey Kipuka have been evaluated and found to meet the criteria for national natural landmark (NNL) status be cause they are outstanding representatives of the "Low Sagebrush/Idaho Fescue" subtheme in the "Low Sagebrush" theme within the Columbia Plateau natural region. These areas have been recommended for designation as national natural landmarks. The proposed NNL in the north unit encompasses lands proposed for exchange with the BLM (see "Boundary Modifications," page 23). Park Service personnel from the monument and the Pacific Northwest regional office will meet with the BLM to discuss the proposal and to consider whether the NNL could include lands managed by both agencies.
The general vegetation type in the proposed national natural landmarks is called shrub steppe. This combination of low shrubs and grasses once was the common vegetation over southern Idaho, but grazing, fire, and agriculture have reduced incidence and altered species composition in the area. Some regional biologists are concerned that all native Idaho sagebrush grasslands are being reduced and altered from the native condition.
Carey Kipuka meets the criteria for a research natural area and will be so designated in cooperation with the state of Idaho.
The National Park Service has recommended that a study of Craters of the Moon National Monument be prepared to determine its potential for designation as a national historic landmark illustrating the theme of history of the geological sciences (specifically, physical geology) in the United States.
MAN AND THE BIOSPHERE
The Park Service is exploring the possibility of seeking biosphere reserve status for Craters of the Moon National Monument and some of the surrounding area under the Man and the Biosphere program of the United Nations. The cooperative park studies unit at the University of Idaho, the BLM, and Idaho National Engineering Laboratory will be included in the discussions.