National Lakeshore completes Port Oneida Management Plan
From staff reports
The National Park Service at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (National Lakeshore) announced the completion of the Port Oneida Historic Landscape Management Plan/Environmental Assessment with the signing of the “Finding of No Significant Impact” (FONSI) on January 17. The FONSI identifies the selected alternative and serves as the decision-making document for the project. The FONSI and Environmental Assessment (EA) may be viewed on the National Lakeshore’s website at www.nps.gov/slbe.
This is the culmination of a public input process that began in November 2010, when letters were sent to governmental agencies, interest groups, and the public, asking for ideas on the future of Port Oneida. A press release was also issued on November 8, 2010, requesting public input. The resultant EA, which described the “No Action” alternative (continue current management) and an action alternative (the Preferred Alternative), was placed on public review from August 9 to September 12, 2011. A press release was issued on August 9, 2011, stating that the document could be reviewed on the park’s website, and paper copies were available at village and township offices and area libraries. A public open house was held at the National Lakeshore’s Visitor Center Auditorium on August 23, 2011. As a result, 40 comments were received from the public and were carefully considered before making a final decision on the EA. A Public Comment Summary and General Response to Comments may be accessed at the park’s website. In addition, a few minor errors in the EA have been noted and corrected, and included in an Errata Sheet. This document may also be accessed at the park’s website.
The National Park Service would like to thank all who provided valuable comments on the EA. We reviewed all comments and carefully considered which approach to take to satisfy the objectives of the project.
The Selected Alternative:
• Strives to maintain the historic agricultural landscape so that the period of significance (1870-1945), and the changes that occurred over that time period, are conveyed to visitors.
• Presents an active program of removing vegetation to maintain or reestablish the historic boundary (or a semblance of the historic boundary) and configuration of fields while addressing natural resource concerns such as invasive plant management, wetland protection, and soil conservation.
• Provides direction for stabilizing existing or reestablishing missing patterns of field and forest and protecting existing historic vegetation through removal of non-historic (and often invasive) vegetation.
• Permits the National Lakeshore to respond positively to proposals for adaptively using the farms that are compatible with objectives for Port Oneida.
For more in-depth information, please call the National Lakeshore at (231) 326-5134 or visit their website at www.nps.gov/slbe. Also, check out their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/sbdnl.
