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What is the Merced River Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement?
In 1987, the Merced River was designated a Wild and Scenic River, which affords it special protection under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. This designation also requires the managing agency (in this case, the National Park Service) to prepare a comprehensive management plan for the river and its immediate environment. Eighty-one miles of the Merced River, including its headwaters along the Sierra crest, flow within the boundaries of Yosemite National Park and the El Portal Administrative Site and are the subject of the Merced Wild and Scenic River Comprehensive Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement (known collectively as the Merced River Plan/FEIS).
The purpose of this document is to provide direction and guidance on how best to manage national park lands within the river corridor for the protection and enhancement of what the Act refers to as "Outstandingly Remarkable Values" (ORVs). Once completed, the Merced River Plan will become a foundation for future implementation plans. Like the 1980 Yosemite General Management Plan, the Merced River Plan will guide future management decisions. It does not propose specific actions.
Why is the Merced River Plan important to me as a visitor? How will it affect my experience in Yosemite?
This plan is important to all people in that the policies it establishes will protect and enhance the river for future generations. As future implementation plans arise, they must look to the Merced River Plan for guidance and direct their actions accordingly.
Depending on the alternative selected, your visit will be affected primarily in terms of the types of recreational activities you enjoy in the river corridor. Some areas of the river may be zoned for less intensive types of visitor activity, affording more opportunities to experience natural quiet and reflection. Other areas may be zoned for bustling activity with frequent encounters with other visitors.
How will the Merced River Plan benefit the park?
Central to this plan is the protection and enhancement of the river’s "outstandingly remarkable values." The Outstandingly Remarkable Values (ORVs) are the valuable characteristics that make the river worthy of special protection. These can include scenic and recreational opportunities; geological, biological and hydrological processes; historic, cultural and archeological features; and the value of natural quiet. The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act requires that these values be "protected for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations." By identifying the river’s ORVs, boundaries, and classifications, the park can better manage this spectacular area for generations to come.
Why did Yosemite wait so long to complete the MRP?
When the legislation was passed in 1987 establishing the Merced as a Wild and Scenic River, Congress stipulated a three-year timeframe to complete the Merced River Plan. Initially, the park interpreted that this would be done when a revision to the General Management Plan took place. Through the years, the park was under this impression, but was corrected earlier in 1999.
Since the Merced’s Wild and Scenic River designation in 1987, park staff have been working on protecting the river through the development of a formal set of "outstandingly remarkable values" (ORVs), river corridor boundaries, and classifications. Boundaries and classifications were adopted in 1989. A formal set of ORVs were presented, along with the boundaries and classifications, in the 1996 Draft Yosemite Valley Housing Plan are used within the No Action Alternative of the Merced River Plan.
Aren’t portions of the river already protected under the Wilderness Act?
Portions of the river are protected under the Wilderness Act, but the Merced River Plan will allow another level of protection. In addition, it will give directives to park management on how future decisions concerning the river are made (i.e. design and placement of bridges in the wilderness).
What are "Outstandingly Remarkable Values"?
Outstandingly Remarkable Values (ORVs) are the valuable characteristics that make the river worthy of special protection. These can include scenic and recreational opportunities; geological, biological and hydrological processes; historic, cultural and archeological features; and the value of natural quiet. The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act requires that these values be "protected for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations." Each of the action alternatives includes a set of Outstandingly Remarkable Values that has been revised and updated from the 1996 Draft Yosemite Valley Housing Plan. The No Action Alternative includes the set of Outstandingly Remarkable Values published in the 1996 Draft Yosemite Valley Housing Plan.
A further revision of ORVs is presented in the action alternatives of the Merced River Plan/FEIS. In response to public comment, they were revised to reflect the park’s greater understanding of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. ORVs must now meet two specific criteria:
- Is the value river-related or river dependent?
- Is the value rare, unique, or exemplary in a regional or national context?
Both of the above criteria must be satisfied in order for a resource to be included as an ORV. To comply with the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, all of the action alternatives protect and restore the same set of revised ORVs.
Trout populations are an example of a resource value removed from the list of 1996 Outstandingly Remarkable Values. In re-examining the list of values, the park asked the above questions and determined that while trout populations are obviously river-related, they were not unique to the region or the nation. As a result, trout were removed from the proposed ORVs for all action alternatives in the Merced River Plan/FEIS.
What are "boundaries" and how have they been applied in the Merced River Plan/FEIS?Boundaries define the extent of the area to be included within the Wild and Scenic River corridor and vary by alternative. The alternatives in the Merced River Plan/FEIS test the implications of applying various boundary widths to provide a range of choices in the Merced River Plan. Two general widths are used: quarter-mile or 100-year floodplain.
- Quarter-mile boundary: Alternatives 4 and 5 apply a quarter-mile boundary throughout entire length of the river corridor. All alternatives (including the No Action Alternative) apply the quarter-mile boundary in the main stem and South Fork wilderness areas. Alternative 2 applies the quarter-mile boundary for the entire corridor except in the El Portal Administrative Site.
- 100-year floodplain plus adjacent wetlands and meadows: Several of the alternatives reduce the boundary in selected segments to the 100-year floodplain plus adjacent wetlands and meadows associated with the hydrologic and ecological processes of the river. The reduced boundaries are generally in developed areas (Yosemite Valley, Wawona, and El Portal Administrative Site). In all cases, the best available floodplain data form the basis for the boundary. In the No Action Alternative, the boundary also includes areas 1/8-mile on each side of several major tributaries with waterfalls. These tributaries are not included in the corridor boundaries for the action alternatives.
What are "classifications"?
Classifications are segments of the river that are designated as either "wild," "scenic," or "recreational," as defined by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. Classification represents the existing condition of the Wild and Scenic River corridor, not necessarily the desired future condition of the corridor. Wild river areas are pristine, free of impoundments, and generally inaccessible. Scenic areas are free of impoundments, generally undeveloped, and may be accessible by roads. Recreational areas are readily accessible by road, and may have undergone some diversion or impoundment in the past. The classifications for each segment remain constant throughout the alternatives with an exception in Alternatives 4 and 5.
What is the River Protection Overlay?
River Protection Overlay is a management tool used to help protect natural processes in the immediate river environment. It is generally a band that includes the river channel and a 100- or 150-foot buffer area (depending on location) on either side of the river. The width of the buffer was developed to allow woody debris to fall into the river providing nutrients and important wildlife habitat. In response to public comment, the Merced River Plan/FEIS outlines specific guidelines regarding future actions pertaining to the River Protection Overlay.
What information is being used for the MRP? What new studies are being done?
The best available current information was used to prepare the draft MRP. There is over 100 years of research and inventories of the Merced River and the Sierra Nevada ecosystem, which culminated in the 1996 Sierra Nevada Ecosystems Project (SNEP) report, which was used in the development of the Merced River Plan/FEIS. The professional expertise of biologists, hydrologists, ecologists, sociologists, landscape architects, planners, and others incorporated the latest understanding of their fields in relation to the Merced River. An extensive bibliography was developed as a reference source for the writing of the plan. No new studies were undertaken, except for the studies already underway such as transportation studies and analysis. Copies of all material listed in the bibliography are available in the park's Research Library.
How does the Merced River Plan relate to the Highway 140 reconstruction work?
Several months after road reconstruction began, the local chapter of the Sierra Club and the Mariposans for Environmentally Responsible Growth filed a lawsuit, attempting to halt construction. On July 12, 1999, U.S. District Court Judge Anthony Ishii provided an opinion that the NPS could continue work on the 6.4-mile section of the road where construction activities were in progress.
In addition, he ordered that the NPS must complete a Comprehensive Management Plan for the Merced Wild and Scenic River and any related compliance documents before any new work that might potentially effect the river could begin. This postponed work on the 1.1-mile section of the road between Cascades Diversion Dam and Pohono Bridge as well as the removal of the Cascades Diversion Dam.
These construction activities are no longer part of the current road project and are now being considered in the Draft Yosemite Valley Plan/Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. Once a Record of Decision on the Merced Wild and Scenic River Comprehensive Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement is signed, the park will have met the requirements of its court-directed deadline.
When will the Merced River Plan be completed?
Public review of the Draft Merced River Plan/EIS took place from January 14 to March 24, 2000. A series of informational meetings and public hearings were held throughout California in 12 locations. During that time, over 2,300 comments were received, representing a broad range of issues. The public’s comments were carefully examined to help create the final Merced River Plan/FEIS.
Some comments addressed concerns regarding the proposed boundaries, classifications, Outstandingly Remarkable Values, and proposed River Protection Overlay. Other public comments included suggestions for changes to the management zoning to respond more directly to the protection of ORVs. Respondents also requested that the National Park Service provide more specific research and monitoring guidelines in the Merced River Plan/FEIS.
In late-June, the Merced River Plan/FEIS was released, presenting a range of alternatives--including a preferred alternative--revised from the original draft plan. Following a 30-day required period of "no action," the Pacific West Regional Director of the National Park Service will select an alternative and will sign a "Record of Decision."
How is carrying capacity being addressed?
As it applies to the park, "carrying capacity" is the type and level of visitor use that can be accommodated while sustaining the desired resource and social conditions. The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act requires the Merced River Plan to address "user capacities." The Merced River Plan/FEIS addresses this subject through an adaptive management tool known as the Visitor Experience and Resource Protection (VERP) framework. The VERP framework considers both the quality of visitor experiences and natural and cultural resources by focussing on impacts associated with visitor use. In other words, VERP interprets user capacity not as a prescription of numbers of people, but as a prescription of desired visitor experiences and resource conditions.
As with other adaptive management techniques, the VERP framework assists park managers with decision-making; it does not, however, make decisions for the manager. VERP is intended to institutionalize an ongoing program in which park staff would continuously monitor visitors and resources, identify when discrepancies occurred between existing and desired visitor experiences and resource conditions, and take action to achieve desired conditions.
In response to public comment, the Merced River Plan/FEIS contains detailed information regarding the VERP process and development of standards and indicators for future research and monitoring. Each of the action alternatives adopts the VERP framework.
How does the Draft Yosemite Valley Plan/SEIS relate to the Merced River Plan?
The objective of the Merced River Plan is to protect and enhance the Outstandingly Remarkable Values of the Merced River. The plan’s management zone prescriptions guide the Draft Yosemite Valley Plan/SEIS in the type of development and levels of use allowed within the river corridor including Yosemite Valley, Wawona, and El Portal. The Draft Yosemite Valley Plan/SEIS would implement the Merced River Plan through Yosemite Valley as well as in Wawona and El Portal. For example, the Merced River Plan recognizes the importance of a free-flowing Merced River and of riparian and meadow habitat. Alternatives in the Draft Yosemite Valley Plan/SEIS propose specific actions to help restore the river's free-flowing condition and meadows and riparian areas.
Some proposed Draft Yosemite Valley Plan/SEIS actions include:
• Removal of Cascades Diversion Dam to enhance the free flow of the river
• Removal of development from the River Protection Overlay (a buffer zone that extends 150 feet on either side of the river in Yosemite Valley; 100 feet through El Portal)
• Restoration of riparian and meadow habitat throughout the Merced River corridor
Does the Merced River Plan allow the National Park Service to make decisions without further public comment?
No, all significant changes or amendments to the plan will involve public comment. Special implementation actions, which will be covered in future plans, must comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This act insures that environmental information is available to public officials and citizens before decisions are made and before actions are taken. However, in some rare instances, the superintendent can take immediate actions, but only for significant reasons (i.e. public safety). If this were to occur, all actions would be required to fall within specific guidelines.
YNP/General The Planning Process Changes from the Draft
