Jump to main content.

Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the General Management Plan for Cane River Creole National Historical Park, Louisiana.

Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.

 [Federal Register: January 31, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 20)]
[Notices]
[Page 4625-4626]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr31ja00-50]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) for the General Management Plan for Cane River Creole National
Historical Park, Louisiana.

SUMMARY:  Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental
Policy Act, the National Park Service will prepare an Environmental
Impact Statement to assess the potential impacts of future development
and management options in conjunction with the General Management Plan
(GMP) for Cane River Creole National Historical Park, Louisiana.
    Preparation of a draft GMP began in 1996 and included preparation
of a draft Environmental Assessment. Scoping for the plan has included
interdisciplinary team meetings with the Cane River National Heritage
Area Commission, interested agencies, organizations, and individuals.
Meetings with the general public were conducted in January and
February, 1996, March and April 1997, and March and April 1998. The
scoping process has indicated that the proposals being considered may
constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality
of the human environment. Therefore, the preparation of an EIS in
conjunction with the plan is appropriate.
    The General Management Plan and EIS will investigate alternatives
ranging from no action to a variety of development and management
proposals designed to guide visitor use, resource protection, and
partnership relationships. Federal, state, and local agencies, and
other individuals and organizations who may be interested in, or
affected by, the future development of Cane River Creole National
Historical Park are further invited to participate in refining or
identifying issues.
    Preparation of the plan and EIS is expected to take about 11
months. The draft plan and EIS should be available for public review by
early spring, 2000 with the final plan and EIS and Record of Decision
expected to be completed by

[[Page 4626]]

early fall, 2000. Schedules for public meetings to solicit comments on
the draft plan/EIS will be announced in the local press at the time of
plan completion.

ADDRESSES:  Written comments concerning preparation of the EIS or
requests for information or to be added to the project mailing list,
should be sent to: Superintendent, Cane River Creole National
Historical Park, 4386 Highway 494, Natchez, Louisiana 71456. Telephone:
318-352-0383. E-mail: laura__soulliere@nps.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Superintendent, Cane River Creole
National Historical Park, at the above address and telephone number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Cane River Creole National Historical Park
was designated November 2, 1994. Congress established the park to: (1)
Assist in the preservation and interpretation of, and education
concerning, the Creole culture and diverse history of the Natchitoches
region, and (2) to provide technical assistance to landowners and
preservation organizations. The park includes a total of 63 acres of
historic plantation properties located at two distinct sites along the
Cane River in northwestern Louisiana near the city of Natchitoches: (1)
44 acres of Oakland Plantation and (2) 19 acres of Magnolia Plantation.
The plantations were owned and continuously operated by the same French
Creole families for eight generations. They retain an extensive number
of outbuildings and have retained the appearance and integrity of
modest family plantations. Most of the structures are classic Creole
architecture with roots in African and early French architecture.
Oakland Plantation includes the remaining core plantation
infrastructure of 26 buildings, ranging from the main house and 1835
bottle garden, to numerous outbuildings, including the plantation
store, pigeonniers, a large seed house, workshops, and two quarters.
The Magnolia Plantation unit is comprised of 17 outbuildings and
dependencies, including the slave hospital/overseer's house, a unique
complex of eight brick quarters clustered in two rows, the plantation
store, a blacksmith shop, and a large gin barn that houses a rare
cotton press and two types of cotton gins.
    The 1994 legislation also created the Cane River National Heritage
Area and Commission. This national heritage area was created to
complement the park and provide a culturally sensitive approach to
preserving the heritage of the Cane River region through local
partnerships, thereby minimizing the need for federal land acquisition
or management. The Commission is advisory to the National Park Service
in the preparation of the general management plan.
    In accordance with NPS park planning policy, the GMP/EIS will
ensure the park has a clearly defined direction for resource
preservation and visitor use. It will be developed in consultation with
the public and based on adequate analysis of existing and potential
resource conditions and visitor experiences, environmental impacts, and
costs of alternative courses of action.
    Our practice is to make comments, including names and home
addresses of respondents, available for public review during regular
business hours. Individual respondents may request that we withhold
their home address from the rulemaking record, which we will honor to
the extent allowable by law.
    There also may be circumstances in which we would withhold from the
rulemaking record a respondent's identity as allowable by law. If you
wish for us to withhold your name and/or address, you must state this
prominently at the beginning of your comment. However, we will not
consider anonymous comments. We will make all submissions from
organizations or businesses, and from individuals themselves as
representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, available
for public inspection in their entirety.
    The environmental review of the GMP/EIS for the park will be
conducted in accordance with requirements of the NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4371
et seq.), NEPA regulation (40 CFR 1500-1508), other pertinent Federal
regulations, and National Park Service procedures and policies.

    Dated: January 19, 2000.
W. Thomas Brown,
Acting Regional Director, Southeast Region.
[FR Doc. 00-2024 Filed 1-28-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-M

 
 

Local Navigation

Jump to main content.