WhiteBlaze Pages 2024
A Complete Appalachian Trail Guidebook.
AVAILABLE NOW. $4 for interactive PDF(smartphone version)
Read more here WhiteBlaze Pages Store

Page 1 of 2 1 2 LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 26
  1. #1
    Registered User
    Join Date
    02-05-2009
    Location
    Delray Beach, Florids
    Age
    73
    Posts
    1,359

    Default Public input needed,(thanks Rain Man)

    Public Input Sought for Development of Appalachian National Scenic Trail Foundation Document

    The National Park Service is starting the process of preparing a Foundation Document for planning and management of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, a unit of the National Park Service. The trail would like to invite the public to join in this effort.

    A Foundation Document involves revisiting a national park unit's core purpose and significance, most important resources and values, and the interpretive themes that tell the park's important stories. Although the Foundation Document is not a decision-making document and does not include actions or management strategies, it describes a shared understanding of what is most important about the park. In this capacity, the Foundation Document will reestablish the underlying guidance for future management and planning decisions at Appalachian National Scenic Trail. Because many of the trail's original planning documents are out of date, preparing the Foundation Document is the first step for considering the park's future planning and study needs.

    The National Park Service invites you to play a role in charting the trail's future by sharing your thoughts on what is most important about the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, and to help identify its most pressing threats and its greatest opportunities. Your feedback will allow the park to take your thoughts into consideration as they prepare the Foundation Document.

    You may submit your feedback at www.parkplanning.nps.gov/appafoundation from Dec 9 – Jan 9 by responding to five questions about the park's significance, threats, and opportunities.

    About the Appalachian National Scenic Trail: The Appalachian Trail is a 2,184 mile long public footpath that traverses the scenic, wooded, pastoral, wild, and culturally resonant lands of the Appalachian Mountains. Conceived in 1921, built by private citizens, and completed in 1937, today the trail is managed by the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, numerous state agencies and thousands of volunteers. www.nps.gov/appa

    About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 401 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to- home recreational opportunities. www.nps.gov.


    Topic Questions:
    1. What do you value most about the Appalachian Trail?
    2. What do you think are the most important resources of the Appalachian Trail?
    3. What do you think are the most important stories of the Appalachian Trail?
    4. What opportunities for visitor experiences, education and outreach, or resource protection efforts would you like to see for the Appalachian Trail?
    5. What do you think are the greatest issues or threats facing the Appalachian Trail?
    Last edited by Alligator; 12-11-2013 at 11:03. Reason: Added questions for consideration.

  2. #2

    Default

    Yup... I saw that too! I will do it!

  3. #3

    Default

    Knowing the NPS and what they did in the Smokies despite input and public comments against all-site reservations and against the $4 overnight backpacking fee---yes, the Park went ahead and radically transformed the backcountry experience despite what the majority of the public wanted---I'd say this is another attempt to institute and generate permits and overnight fees for the Appalachian Trail. Remember, the GSMNP experience began with a period of public comments.

  4. #4
    Getting out as much as I can..which is never enough. :) Mags's Avatar
    Join Date
    03-15-2004
    Location
    Colorado Plateau
    Age
    49
    Posts
    11,002

    Default

    Thanks to both you and Rain Man for helping to bring this to our attention.
    Paul "Mags" Magnanti
    http://pmags.com
    Twitter: @pmagsco
    Facebook: pmagsblog

    The true harvest of my life is intangible...a little stardust caught,a portion of the rainbow I have clutched -Thoreau

  5. #5
    Registered User
    Join Date
    08-16-2011
    Location
    Boston, Massachusetts
    Posts
    318

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by moldy View Post
    Public Input Sought for Development of Appalachian National Scenic Trail Foundation Document

    The National Park Service is starting the process of preparing a Foundation Document for planning and management of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, a unit of the National Park Service. The trail would like to invite the public to join in this effort.

    A Foundation Document involves revisiting a national park unit's core purpose and significance, most important resources and values, and the interpretive themes that tell the park's important stories. Although the Foundation Document is not a decision-making document and does not include actions or management strategies, it describes a shared understanding of what is most important about the park. In this capacity, the Foundation Document will reestablish the underlying guidance for future management and planning decisions at Appalachian National Scenic Trail. Because many of the trail's original planning documents are out of date, preparing the Foundation Document is the first step for considering the park's future planning and study needs.
    I am sure that the spirit of Franz Kafka will be most impressed with the logic that comes out of this effort.

  6. #6

    Default

    I agree with TW. Time will tell.
    Grey Ghost

  7. #7
    Registered User mrcoffeect's Avatar
    Join Date
    11-02-2010
    Location
    Griswold,ct
    Age
    56
    Posts
    434
    Images
    7

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    Knowing the NPS and what they did in the Smokies despite input and public comments against all-site reservations and against the $4 overnight backpacking fee---yes, the Park went ahead and radically transformed the backcountry experience despite what the majority of the public wanted---I'd say this is another attempt to institute and generate permits and overnight fees for the Appalachian Trail. Remember, the GSMNP experience began with a period of public comments.
    I agree with this 100%

  8. #8
    Registered User Wise Old Owl's Avatar
    Join Date
    01-29-2007
    Location
    High up in an old tree
    Posts
    14,444
    Journal Entries
    19
    Images
    17

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    Knowing the NPS and what they did in the Smokies despite input and public comments against all-site reservations and against the $4 overnight backpacking fee---yes, the Park went ahead and radically transformed the backcountry experience despite what the majority of the public wanted---I'd say this is another attempt to institute and generate permits and overnight fees for the Appalachian Trail. Remember, the GSMNP experience began with a period of public comments.


    They do the same thing when they want to build a state prison in your backyard,,,, Good pick up Tipi!
    Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    Woo

  9. #9

    Default

    Sent, thanks for posting.

  10. #10

    Default

    All National Parks are required to have this Foundation Document--yes, likely some politician's idea--but it's not about the fees, and the small piece of the Park Service that is the AT is not the as the part that is GSMNP (the AT is a really big entity, and inevitably it's many parts are going to create some friction).

    There are National Parks you've never heard of, they will need to have Foundation Documents too. The AT is lucky in some regards, there is already a really good body of documentation that defines a lot of what the AT is about--but much of it has been generated internally (by people who are passionate about the AT). I think this might be an opportunity to hear from folks outside the inner circle.

    Public input is important, and a Foundation Document for the Trail that explains for instance, that a key part of the visitor's experience is the freedom to set one's own pace and schedule will help others understand what are the important themes and ideas that underlay what the Trail is all about.

    Submit your comments. Tell your friends to do it too. You can take 5 minutes or 50. Tell the Park Service what the Trail means to you. What threatens it, what could strengthen it. If there are 10,000 comments, it will be understood that this Trail matters to a great many people. When a great many people hold something dear and consider it important, others will pay attention. Don't stand on the sidelines and bitch about it, participate.

    Cosmo

  11. #11
    Registered User Tri-Pod Bob's Avatar
    Join Date
    05-28-2013
    Location
    Somewhere in the wilds of Western Massachusetts
    Age
    66
    Posts
    155
    Journal Entries
    1

    Default

    10,000; 100,000; 1,000,000 comments. More is better, actually, for the designers. I don't see that the poll nor the answers given, is what's important. I think it is going to be utilized as a distraction/diversion from the more probable purpose. A higher 'head count' = a larger potential source of revenue. When all is said & done, it's still going to be about how much $$$ can be obtained. When is a tax not a tax? When you call it a "FEE". We ARE ultimately talking about a deeply indebted entity.......called the US Gov't!
    Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.
    Chief Seattle

  12. #12

    Default

    N Parks Conservation Asso.jpg

    Somewhat related, I just got the letter from the National Parks Conservation Association with a bunch of questions. They don't appear to be part of the govt but rather a group that tries to get the govt to cough up more money for the parks and see that it is spent wisely.
    10 questions
    question #8. The air quality in Great Smoky Mountains, Sequoia/Kings Canyon and other national parks has diminished to the point where on some days it can be dangerous for humans to breathe. Visitors may be greeted by signs advising them against hiking if they have respiratory problems! Should companies required to clean up the air pollution they generate that affects the air inside the park boundaries? Yes No

    # 9 Should the Parks be open for drilliing?

    They ask for a donation $15.00 and I get a NPCA fleece blanket with their logo.

  13. #13

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Chair-man View Post
    N Parks Conservation Asso.jpg

    Somewhat related, I just got the letter from the National Parks Conservation Association with a bunch of questions. They don't appear to be part of the govt but rather a group that tries to get the govt to cough up more money for the parks and see that it is spent wisely.
    10 questions
    question #8. The air quality in Great Smoky Mountains, Sequoia/Kings Canyon and other national parks has diminished to the point where on some days it can be dangerous for humans to breathe. Visitors may be greeted by signs advising them against hiking if they have respiratory problems! Should companies required to clean up the air pollution they generate that affects the air inside the park boundaries? Yes No

    # 9 Should the Parks be open for drilliing?

    They ask for a donation $15.00 and I get a NPCA fleece blanket with their logo.
    I backpack south of the Park and have complained bitterly about the filth in the air and the air pollution in the TN valley which drifts into the mountains. Remember, the GSMNP has the worst air quality of all the parks in the country. I guess the ozone haze is orange so yes, Go Big Orange. They say it's worst than the smog in LA.

    And yes, the Knoxville news regularly issues "Ozone Action Alerts" with a color code advising humans to stay indoors. Crazy. And people wonder why our asthma rates are 6 times the national average or something like that. And here's the craziest thing of all: THE PARK STILL ALLOWS UNLIMITED CAR ACCESS!! It's like the place is run by bonobo apes with diet soda-induced retardation. Too much ingestion of Mt Dew?? Probably. Certainly.

    I've been backpacking in this filth for the last 12 years and it would not surprise me to be diagnosed with some air pollution-caused cancer. "Welcome to the Smokies---The Gateway to Bladder Cancer" ha ha ha but it's not funny anymore.

  14. #14

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    I backpack south of the Park and have complained bitterly about the filth in the air and the air pollution in the TN valley which drifts into the mountains.
    The NPCP addresses this issue here> Dec 4, 2013. A Transformative Victory: A Q&A with Don Barger on Progress Reducing Coal-Based Pollution in the Southeast

    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    THE PARK STILL ALLOWS UNLIMITED CAR ACCESS!!
    Question #7 from NPCA survey: Would you be willing to park your car and use mass transit - light rail, environmentally-friendly bus- if it kept a park cleaner and eased the burden of overcrowding? yes no.

    Not sure how the NPCA got my address. I guessing it was from when I registered for a parking permit at Amicalola Falls a little while back.

    When Tipi Talks people should listen!

  15. #15
    Registered User
    Join Date
    11-13-2009
    Location
    St. Louis, MO
    Age
    70
    Posts
    2,552

    Default

    Drunks ! Sounds like there is a common enough problem with drunk party folks that hike in and take over a shelter and trash the place. I believe the AT is a national park , and I think alcohol is not allowed in national parks. So the Rangers or police could run off or arrest these folks. Nobody is going to complain if you've got a flask and have a dram or 2 after supper. But the people that get really stupid should be run off.

  16. #16

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    I backpack south of the Park and have complained bitterly about the filth in the air and the air pollution in the TN valley which drifts into the mountains. Remember, the GSMNP has the worst air quality of all the parks in the country. I guess the ozone haze is orange so yes, Go Big Orange. They say it's worst than the smog in LA.

    And yes, the Knoxville news regularly issues "Ozone Action Alerts" with a color code advising humans to stay indoors. Crazy. And people wonder why our asthma rates are 6 times the national average or something like that. And here's the craziest thing of all: THE PARK STILL ALLOWS UNLIMITED CAR ACCESS!! It's like the place is run by bonobo apes with diet soda-induced retardation. Too much ingestion of Mt Dew?? Probably. Certainly.

    I've been backpacking in this filth for the last 12 years and it would not surprise me to be diagnosed with some air pollution-caused cancer. "Welcome to the Smokies---The Gateway to Bladder Cancer" ha ha ha but it's not funny anymore.
    While I share your concern about smog and wouldn't mind limiting car access at all (or banning it in the Smokies), I would not presume that the Rt. 441 traffic alone is the sole cause of the Smokies' dirty air problems. In other words, you could seal up Rt. 441 today plus the perimeter roads and the air would improve marginally, if at all.

    Dirty air knows no boundaries. The Smokies will still be impaired by power plant emissions and auto smog that drifts from hundreds of miles away.

  17. #17

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Chair-man View Post

    Somewhat related, I just got the letter from the National Parks Conservation Association with a bunch of questions. They don't appear to be part of the govt but rather a group that tries to get the govt to cough up more money for the parks and see that it is spent wisely. ...
    The NPCA is an environmental advocacy group that focuses on the National Parks. I was a member for years.

    Many times, groups like this solicit members by first providing a survey, followed by solicitations to join them, often with enticing gifts.

    I must say that the question "Should companies be required to clean up the air pollution they generate that affects the air inside the park boundaries?" is very simplistic and frankly condescending. There are existing laws on the books; the better question is the government's (in this case, EPA) priority in enforcing Clean Air Act regulations. And the existing dirty air can't be "cleaned up." The only solution is prevention in the first place.
    Last edited by Cookerhiker; 12-15-2013 at 08:11.

  18. #18
    Registered User
    Join Date
    05-28-2007
    Location
    east
    Age
    77
    Posts
    696

    Default

    This reminds me of the glorious interagency grizzly bear committee that has achieved so f'g much.

  19. #19
    Furlough's Avatar
    Join Date
    03-17-2004
    Location
    Northern Virginia
    Age
    62
    Posts
    900
    Images
    124

    Default

    Thank you for posting this. Survey filled out and sent.
    "Too often I would hear men boast of the miles covered that day, rarely of what they had seen." Louis L’Amour

  20. #20
    Registered User canoe's Avatar
    Join Date
    04-29-2012
    Location
    Tyner, NC
    Age
    67
    Posts
    949

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by moldy View Post
    Public Input Sought for Development of Appalachian National Scenic Trail Foundation Document

    The National Park Service is starting the process of preparing a Foundation Document for planning and management of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, a unit of the National Park Service. The trail would like to invite the public to join in this effort.

    A Foundation Document involves revisiting a national park unit's core purpose and significance, most important resources and values, and the interpretive themes that tell the park's important stories. Although the Foundation Document is not a decision-making document and does not include actions or management strategies, it describes a shared understanding of what is most important about the park. In this capacity, the Foundation Document will reestablish the underlying guidance for future management and planning decisions at Appalachian National Scenic Trail. Because many of the trail's original planning documents are out of date, preparing the Foundation Document is the first step for considering the park's future planning and study needs.

    The National Park Service invites you to play a role in charting the trail's future by sharing your thoughts on what is most important about the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, and to help identify its most pressing threats and its greatest opportunities. Your feedback will allow the park to take your thoughts into consideration as they prepare the Foundation Document.

    You may submit your feedback at www.parkplanning.nps.gov/appafoundation from Dec 9 – Jan 9 by responding to five questions about the park's significance, threats, and opportunities.

    About the Appalachian National Scenic Trail: The Appalachian Trail is a 2,184 mile long public footpath that traverses the scenic, wooded, pastoral, wild, and culturally resonant lands of the Appalachian Mountains. Conceived in 1921, built by private citizens, and completed in 1937, today the trail is managed by the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, numerous state agencies and thousands of volunteers. www.nps.gov/appa

    About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 401 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to- home recreational opportunities. www.nps.gov.


    Topic Questions:
    1. What do you value most about the Appalachian Trail?
    2. What do you think are the most important resources of the Appalachian Trail?
    3. What do you think are the most important stories of the Appalachian Trail?
    4. What opportunities for visitor experiences, education and outreach, or resource protection efforts would you like to see for the Appalachian Trail?
    5. What do you think are the greatest issues or threats facing the Appalachian Trail?
    Here we go...govment will take over from volunteers and highly regulate the trail with a fee. Its the next step.

Page 1 of 2 1 2 LastLast
++ New Posts ++

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •