NPS Photo Settlement Agreement and Revised Record of DecisionOn January 8, 2025, Point Reyes National Seashore announced a Revised Record of Decision (ROD) for the General Management Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement (GMPA) for Point Reyes National Seashore and the north district of Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The GMPA provides management guidance for the preservation of natural and cultural resources and the management of infrastructure and visitor use in the planning area. The plan also addresses the management of native tule elk and park lands currently leased for ranching. The National Park Service (NPS) is also announcing a settlement agreement (358 KB PDF) resolving litigation filed in 2022 challenging the GMPA. For more information, please see the news release and frequently asked questions below. News ReleaseSettlement Agreement and Revised Record of Decision Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat is the outcome of the Revised Record of Decision and the settlement agreement?The National Park Service (NPS) issued the Revised Record of Decision (ROD) in light of private, voluntary ranch closure agreements between The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the operators of six dairy and six beef ranches in Point Reyes National Seashore. Under these agreements, ranchers will cease operations within approximately 15 months and surrender their leases in exchange for compensation from TNC. The Revised ROD shifts the focus for the management of these lands away from commercial ranching and toward resource conservation. Through an expanded Scenic Landscape zone, the NPS, on its own and with conservation partners such as TNC, will enhance natural resources and provide increased opportunities for visitors. One of the tools that will be employed in the Scenic Landscape zone is targeted grazing. Targeted grazing allows NPS to manage the harvest of vegetation with grazing and/or browsing animals to maintain habitat for native plant and animal communities, including rare and endangered species. The NPS has issued a cooperative agreement and lease option to TNC to assist with conservation efforts on lands vacated by ranchers. The NPS will not limit the movement of or lethally control the native tule elk population within Point Reyes. Additionally, the NPS has issued 20-year lease/permits to the seven remaining beef operations in in Golden Gate National Recreation Area and will negotiate long-term leases with the two remaining beef operations in Point Reyes National Seashore. The settlement agreement (358 KB PDF) will resolve litigation filed in 2022 challenging the General Management Plan Amendment, the plan that addresses the management of native tule elk and lands currently leased for beef and dairy ranching. While the ranches are winding down, the litigation will be stayed. At the end of the wind-down period, a notice of dismissal of the litigation will be filed with the court. Can the National Park Service issue a Revised Record of Decision without additional planning under the National Environmental Policy Act?The National Park Service can issue a Revised Record of Decision when the action selected for implementation is a combination of elements reviewed during the public planning process. The new selected action consists of elements considered in alternatives B, D, E, and F of the Final Environmental Impact Statement and falls within the spectrum of alternatives considered. The new selected action incorporates feedback from nearly 12,000 public comment letters and six public meetings during the 2017–2021 General Management Plan Amendment planning process. What is the new selected action in the Revised Record of Decision?In the selected action of the Revised Record of Decision, lands vacated by ranchers in Point Reyes National Seashore will be rezoned as part of the Scenic Landscape zone and will no longer be used for commercial grazing. The National Park Service (NPS) will not limit the movement of or lethally control the native tule elk population in Point Reyes. The NPS has issued 20-year lease/permits and operating conditions to the seven beef ranches at Golden Gate and will negotiate long-term leases to the two remaining beef ranches at Point Reyes. The NPS has also issued a cooperative agreement and lease option to TNC to support resource conservation activities on lands vacated by ranchers. How was the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria involved in the Revised Record of Decision?Under the General Agreement for a government-to-government partnership, Point Reyes National Seashore consulted and collaborated with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria (FIGR) on the Revised Record of Decision. FIGR is the only federally recognized tribe with ancestral lands at Point Reyes and Golden Gate. The General Agreement established a partnership between the FIGR and the National Park Service for natural and cultural resource protection and stewardship, use of traditional ecological knowledge, education, research, revitalization of community and tradition, and the overall stewardship of park lands and places. What are the benefits of the settlement agreement and Revised Record of Decision?The selected action eliminates environmental impacts associated with dairy ranching, enhances both natural and cultural resource protection and visitor experience through an expanded Scenic Landscape zone, and honors the co-stewardship agreement with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. The selected action benefits native tule elk by providing increased habitat and disallowing lethal management of the tule elk population. Why is the National Park Service entering into an agreement with The Nature Conservancy to assist with conservation efforts on lands vacated by ranchers?The National Park Service is entering into a cooperative agreement and lease option with The Nature Conservancy to assist with conservation efforts on lands vacated by ranchers to support the desired conditions in the Scenic Landscape zone. Examples of conservation efforts contemplated by the agreements include targeted grazing to help maintain rare and endangered plant species, reduction of non-native vegetation, reduction of fire fuel loads, and management of grasslands that contribute to the historic character of the Point Reyes Peninsula Dairy Ranches Historic District. What ranches in Point Reyes are ceasing operations?The closing dairy operations in Point Reyes are A Ranch, B Ranch, C Ranch, I Ranch, L Ranch, and J/K Ranch. The closing beef operations are E Ranch, F Ranch, G Ranch, H Ranch, M Ranch, and Home/N Ranches. When these operations cease, there will be a reduction of nearly 17,000 acres of commercial ranching and 4,729 animal units or number of cattle in Point Reyes compared to counts when the planning process began in 2017. What ranches will continue to operate in Point Reyes National Seashore and Golden Gate National Recreation Area?In Point Reyes, D. Rogers Ranch, a residential beef operation, and Niman Ranch, a beef operation under a Reservation of Use and Occupancy (RUO), will continue to operate on a total of 2,210 acres with 282 animal units. In Golden Gate, McIsaac Ranch, R. Giacomini Ranch, and Zanardi Ranch—three residential beef operations, Percy Ranch—a beef operation under an RUO, and C. Rogers, McFadden Ranch, and E. Gallagher Ranch—three grazing only beef operations, will continue to operate on a total of 9,028 acres with 635 animal units. Who are the parties to this agreement?Signatories to the settlement agreement are the National Park Service, park ranchers who participated in the mediation, the Point Reyes Seashore Ranchers Association, The Nature Conservancy, Resource Renewal Institute, Center for Biological Diversity, and Western Watersheds Project. Other than ranchers and their families, how many people live on the ranches that will be closing? What will happen to them?There are approximately 90 tenants living on the ranches that will cease operations within approximately 15 months. Some of the tenants are ranch employees. Mediation parties are cooperating to provide support to the ranch employees and tenants who will need to find new employment and housing when ranching operations end. This support includes an approximately 12-month transition period to find new housing, severance packages for affected employees, housing financial assistance packages, employee transition support services, and housing transition support services. Previous information on the General Management Plan AmendmentThe National Park Service (NPS) completed a General Management Plan Amendment (GMP Amendment) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Point Reyes National Seashore and the north district of Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The GMP Amendment/EIS updates management guidance for more than 28,000 acres of NPS lands, including all lands currently leased for ranching and tule elk in those areas. How is this website arranged? The first seven sections are ordered by date from most recent to initial steps of the GMP Amendment. Further below is background information, news releases, and the project timeline. Scroll to the end of the page for frequently asked questions and a citizen's guide to environmental planning. Ranching and Dairying Lease/PermitsIn 2022, Point Reyes National Seashore began issuing Interim Ranching and Dairying Lease/Permits to the ranchers within the park. Record of DecisionOn Monday, September 13, 2021, the National Park Service issued the record of decision (ROD) for the General Management Plan Amendment and environmental impact statement addressing the future management of all lands currently under agricultural lease/permit within Point Reyes National Seashore and the north district of Golden Gate National Recreation Area and the management of free-ranging tule elk in those areas. The ROD identifies the alternative selected for implementation and concludes the environmental review process. The selected action serves as a blueprint to guide the National Park Service's management of lands, resources, development, and visitor use in the 28,000 acre planning area. Please see the Record of Decision for the General Management Plan Amendment page and the Record of Decision Frequently Asked Questions page for more details. News ReleaseCalifornia Coastal Commission Public HearingOn Thursday, April 22, 2021, the California Coastal Commission held a public hearing to consider a Consistency Determination by the National Park Service for the 2020 General Management Plan Amendment for Point Reyes National Seashore and the north district of Golden Gate National Recreation Area, including elk and ranch management actions. The public was invited to participate. Final Environmental Impact StatementPlease see the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the General Management Plan Amendment page for more details and links to the plan with supporting documents. Please also see the Final Environmental Impact Statement Frequently Asked Questions page. Public Comments on the Draft Environmental Impact StatementPlease see our Public Comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the General Management Plan Amendment page to read the correspondence received during the 45-day public review and comment period, which was open from August 8, 2019, until September 23, 2019. Draft Environmental Impact StatementPlease see our Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the General Management Plan Amendment page for details on the 45-day public review and comment period, which was open from August 8, 2019, until September 23, 2019. Public Scoping CommentsPlease see our General Management Plan Amendment Public Scoping Comments page to read the correspondence received during the 30-day public comment period from October 31, 2018, to November 30, 2018. Public ScopingPlease see our General Management Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement Public Scoping page for details on the 30-day public comment period from October 31, 2018, to November 30, 2018. Initial Public CommentsPlease see our General Management Plan Amendment Initial Public Comments page to read the correspondence received during the initial 37-day public comment period from October 16, 2017, to November 22, 2017. Initial Public Comment PeriodPlease see our General Management Plan Amendment Initial Public Comment Period page for details on the initial 37-day public comment period from October 16, 2017, to November 22, 2017. Background InformationPlease see our General Management Plan Amendment Background Information page for information relevant to this planning process. News ReleasesPlease see our General Management Plan Amendment News Releases page for all news releases related to this plan. Project Timeline
Events in bold above were opportunities for public engagement. QuestionsPlease see our General Management Plan Amendment Record of Decision Frequently Asked Questions page. If you have additional questions regarding the General Management Plan Amendment, please call Outreach Coordinator Melanie Gunn at 415-464-5131. The Citizen's Guide to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a useful resource for those that are not familiar with NEPA or Council on Environmental Quality Regulations. This 37-page guide, published in December 2007 and revised in January 2021, describes the NEPA process and provides information on how citizens can get involved. |
Last updated: January 14, 2025