An Environmental Assessment (EA) on the proposed issuance of a right-of-way permit by Theodore Roosevelt National Park and the proposed issuance of a Private Road Special Use Permit by the U.S. Forest Service has been prepared and is available for public comment.
Verizon Wireless is proposing to replace an existing radio tower (currently supporting a National Park Service radio repeater) with a telecommunications tower of the same height and type, and to install a pre-fabricated equipment shed adjacent to an existing equipment shed on the west boundary of the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Verizon Wireless also would reconstruct and maintain approximately 1.6 miles of National Forest System Road (NFSR) #730A-2 on National Forest System (NFS) land in Sections 17 and 18, T140N, R102W, Billings County, North Dakota.
“Verizon is interested in sharing a tower with the National Park Service in the existing location instead of building a new cellular tower elsewhere in the Medora area,” said Valerie J. Naylor, park Superintendent. “This environmental assessment addresses both the tower replacement and the upgrades that would be required to the U.S. Forest Service access road.”
A public open house for those interested in learning more about the proposed project will be held on Tuesday, January 10, from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Roosevelt Room of the Medora Community Center. One can stop by anytime. Refreshments will be served. “We hope that all interested persons will attend the open house,” said Naylor. “Personnel from the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, and Verizon Wireless will be available to answer questions about the proposed project.”
The purpose of the EA is to evaluate the potential impacts on the physical and human environment that could result from the proposed action and alternatives to that action. The EA was prepared for both the National Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service.
Copies of the environmental assessment are available on the internet at the Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) website at http://parkplanning.nps.gov Copies are also available by writing to the Superintendent, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, P.O. Box 7, Medora, North Dakota 58645, or calling (701) 623-4466.
The public comment period is from December 19, 2005 – January 25, 2006. Written comments can be made directly online on the PEPC website. Written comments may also be mailed to the park. Faxed comments should be sent to (701) 623-4840, Attention: Cellular Tower EA. E-mailed comments should be sent to: thro_forum@nps.gov.
