The purpose of this Final Yosemite Valley Plan/Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement is to present and analyze alternatives that take a comprehensive look at Yosemite Valley – from Happy Isles at the east end of the Valley to the El Portal Road/Big Oak Flat Road intersection at the west end. The Final Yosemite Valley Plan/Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement provides direction and proposes specific actions to preserve Yosemite Valley's natural, cultural, and scenic resources, and to provide opportunities for high-quality, resource-based experiences for visitors. It is based on the broad goals of the 1980 General Management Plan. The results of studies and new information developed since 1980 have guided the development of this document. The four general areas of concern toward which specific actions are directed include: (1) resource preservation and restoration, (2) visitor enjoyment, (3) transportation, and (4) employee housing.

This Final Yosemite Valley Plan/Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement provides five alternatives for the National Park Service and the public to consider to meet the General Management Plan's broad goals for the Yosemite Valley. Under the No Action Alternative, current management direction and trends would continue. Each of the four action alternatives presents comprehensive proposals that would seek to restore degraded areas and to reduce development within the Merced River ecosystem and other highly valued natural and cultural resource environments. Orientation and interpretive services would be enhanced to improve the quality of the visitor experience in Yosemite Valley. The alternatives also seek to reduce automobile congestion. Some housing, administrative operations, and other functions would be removed from the Valley. A traveler information and traffic management system is proposed, and parking options both within and outside Yosemite Valley are analyzed.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, this document analyzes the environ- mental effects of the project alternatives on resources and visitors. Based on the issues and concerns identified during the public comment process, impact analyses focus on natural and cultural resources, scenic resources, transportation, visitor experience, and the social and economic environments. Analyses include the identification and characterization of direct and indirect effects of each alternative, as well as evaluation of cumulative effects of the project alternatives in con- junction with other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions.

Questions regarding this document can be addressed to:

Superintendent
Attn: Yosemite Valley Plan/SEIS
Post Office Box 577
Yosemite National Park, California 95389

or visit the web site: http://www.nps.gov/yose/planning.htm

Yosemite National Park Home Page
http://www.nps.gov
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Yosemite National Park Web Manager