Electronic Newsletter, February 2008

February 19, 2008

Merced River Plan PUBLIC PLANNING WORKSHOP POSTPONED until Friday, March 7, 2008
Due to the stormy weather forecast and concerns raised by many over the possible bad driving conditions, we are postponing the Saturday, February 23, 2008, Public Planning Workshop for the Merced River Plan until Friday, March 7, 2008. Location will be in the Yosemite Valley Visitor Center Auditorium from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm. For more information please visit our web site: www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/newmrp.htm or contact the project manager, Elexis Mayer, by phone at 209/379-1377 or by email.

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NPS Invites Public to March 8 Tuolumne Meadows Plan Workshop in Yosemite Valley

As part of its continuing series, the National Park Service will conduct a PLANNER FOR A DAY public workshop on Saturday, March 8 from 9 am to 4 pm at the Yosemite Valley Visitor Center Auditorium. This event will focus on identifying a range of preliminary alternatives that could be considered in the Tuolumne Meadows Plan.

Since 2005, the NPS has been at work on a planning effort that will combine a comprehensive management plan for the Tuolumne Wild and Scenic River with an area-specific plan for Tuolumne Meadows. The document—known as the Tuolumne River Plan and Tuolumne Meadows Plan Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)—will be released for public review in the summer of 2009.

Now that a range of draft alternatives has been completed for the Tuolumne River Plan, the NPS is beginning development of the Tuolumne Meadows Plan.

The purpose of the Tuolumne Meadows Plan is to:

• Derive its overall guidance from the management elements established in the Tuolumne River Plan
• Identify and site facilities for achieving and maintaining the desired resource conditions and opportunities for visitor experiences established for the Tuolumne Meadows area
• Map the footprint of natural areas and those suitable for facilities in Tuolumne Meadows

This summer, the NPS will release a newsletter presenting preliminary alternative concepts for the Tuolumne Meadows Plan. At that time, the public will have an opportunity to review and provide comments on these early alternatives before they are analyzed in the draft environmental impact statement. To attend the workshop, please RSVP to the project manager, Kristina Rylands, by phone at 209/379-1175, fax [phone], or by email.

For more information on this and other Yosemite projects, visit online at www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/trp.htm.