The National Park Service is extending the public comment period on the Draft Backcountry Management Plan and associated environmental assessment (EA) for Wupatki National Monument. The extension will now go through Sunday, January 30, 2022.
The purpose of this Plan is to provide protection and preservation of irreplaceable resources and wilderness character, while establishing long-term direction for public access and experiences to be had in eligible wilderness and other backcountry lands of the Monument.
The EA describes two alternatives: a no-action alternative and an action alternative — which has been identified as the NPS preferred alternative. The no-action alternative reflects a continuation of current management practices, as established in the park’s 2004 General Management Plan. The action alternative presents a phased approach to expanding visitor opportunities in the monument’s backcountry through additional guided hikes and the potential for permitted, unguided access to a section of the backcountry. The action alternative also includes updated management zoning descriptions and boundaries, visitor capacities, and monitoring indicators and thresholds established to guide resource protection and management.
Public input is vital to this process and we want to hear from you! Please visit the National Park Service project website at https://parkplanning.nps.gov/WUPABackcountry to download a copy of the complete EA and submit your thoughts.
For questions please contact Jon Hardes, Planning & Compliance Program Coordinator at jonathan_hardes@nps.gov or (928) 526-1157, x270, or Lisa Leap, Resources Stewardship & Science Manager at lisa_leap@nps.gov or (928) 522-4377.
For more information about Wupatki National Monument, please call (928) 679-2365. You can also visit the park website at: http://www.nps.gov/wupa.
About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 423 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov
