Park Planning

A visitor glides through a watery forest on a kayak in the eastern section of the park.

Wilderness Eligibility Assessment
(Updated June 18, 2021)
Congaree National Park is currently preparing a wilderness eligibility assessment of all lands added to the park since 1988. Congress designated most of the park wilderness in 1988, but the park has since been expanded multiple times. National Park Service policy requires the park to identify which of these new lands may be “eligible” for designation as wilderness. Only Congress can designate new wilderness.

The bulk of the Congaree addition lands comprise the area between the Norfolk Southern rail line on the west and the Wateree River on the east. Other lands being assessed include the Devils Elbow oxbow area and a strip of land lying between Red Bluff road on the north and the 1988 park boundary on the south. Anyone having information about the wilderness character of these lands is invited to provide it to the National Park Service in care of Mark Kinzer, Regional Wilderness Coordinator, at e-mail us.

After the eligibility assessment is complete, the park will conduct a formal wilderness study. The wilderness study will identify which of the eligible lands, if any, should be formally proposed for addition to the Congaree National Park Wilderness. The public will have multiple opportunities to participate in the wilderness study process.

 

The Foundation Document provides basic guidance for decision-making and management of Congaree National Park. The document presents a shared understanding of the purpose, significance, fundamental resources and values, primary interpretive themes, and special mandates for Congaree National Park. It also documents the desired conditions for the park, providing the broadest level of direction for management based on laws and policies that guide the National Park Service.

The Management Plan for Non-Native Pigs provides information on the park's course of action to reduce natural and cultural resource impacts associated with wild pigs and to reduce risks to human health and safety. The environmental assessment (EA) associated with the management plan analyzes potential impacts to the human environment.