Feedback changes Denali park plan
ANILCA: Leaders say latest proposal illegally limits access
by Tom Moran
The Associated Press
(Published: August 12, 2003)


FAIRBANKS -- Feedback from state political leaders is prompting the National Park Service to change its long-term plan for land use in Denali National Park.

Park officials say many of the changes address concerns that the plan would limit recreational access to the park in violation of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. Denali Superintendent Paul Anderson told the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner that the most obvious change in the plan will be an emphasis on the fact that the plan itself will not restrict park use.

"It's going to be more clear that the plan's role is not to make regulations," he said. "The plan's role is to define what the backcountry should look like, what range of opportunities we should be providing for the public."
Anderson said, "There were few, if any, issues raised by the state that can't be addressed in the final plan."

The Denali Backcountry Management Plan, two years in the making, is a comprehensive re-evaluation of land use within the park designed to update the last plan, written in 1986. It dictates how the land will be managed in the future and could include changes such as a registration and permit systems for snowmachiners, a cap on the number of Mount McKinley climbers and new rules for air taxi operators. The public comment for the plan ended May 30. During that period, Anderson said, more than 10,000 comments were received, including a group of comments from representatives of the state.

In late July, Anderson and National Park Service Deputy Director Randy Jones met with high-level officials from the governor's office and the departments of Natural Resources and Fish and Game to discuss their concerns.
One major concern was that the plan restricts access to certain areas solely to preserve a feeling of solitude for users. Representatives of the state argue that ANILCA allows restrictions to land access only when it is detrimental to resources like fish, wildlife, vegetation and water.

What kinds of access ANILCA does or does not allow has been the subject of many Denali access disputes.
Anderson said the plan will not close or restrict any access in violation of ANILCA. He said the changes proposed in the plan would be implemented whenever possible through methods like education and through voluntary restrictions by user groups, with regulations and restrictions only used as a final means.