Public invited to comment on Draft Isle Royale Non-Wilderness Cultural Resources Management Plan/Environmental Assessment

This map detail shows some of the locations of non-wilderness cultural resources on the eastern end of Isle Royale in Lake Superior. Click on map for larger version. (Map courtesy National Park Service)

HOUGHTON -- The National Park Service (NPS) invites the public to participate in an informational open house meeting and webinar on the draft Non-Wilderness Cultural Resources Management Plan/ Environmental Assessment (EA). The draft plan evaluates three alternatives for managing the non-wilderness cultural resources in the park: a no-action alternative (Alternative A) and two action alternatives (Alternative B and Alternative C). The plan can be accessed here: http://parkplanning.nps.gov/ISROcrmp.

The public open house will be held from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. (EDT) on Monday, August 26, 2019, on the 7th floor of the Magnuson Franklin Square Inn, 820 Shelden Avenue in Houghton, Mich. A short presentation will start at 4:30 followed by a question and answer period and open house.

In order to maximize opportunities to learn more about the draft plan/EA, a webinar is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (EDT) on Tuesday, August 27. To register for the webinar, CLICK HERE.

The same information will be presented at the open house meeting and the webinar.

Isle Royale's cultural resources reflect 4500 years of human endeavor and include: prehistoric mining and occupation sites, American Indian and Euro-American historic mining and fishery sites, lighthouses, shipwrecks, and historic resorts and summer homes. They demonstrate a complex interaction of people and the role they played in shaping the human and physical landscapes on Isle Royale. Presently, the National Park Service manages its cultural resources according to directives defined in the Park's General Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement (GMP/EIS 1998) without specific guidance for a number of cultural resource themes and topics. The proposed CRMP/EA seeks to define sustainable management practices for all significant cultural resources found in nonwilderness areas on Isle Royale, including archeological sites, cultural landscapes, historic structures, ethnographic resources, and museum objects.

The public is invited to submit written comments on the Plan/EA at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/ISROcrmp. Please enter your comments by September 6, 2019. Comments may also be submitted by regular mail or hand delivery to: Superintendent Phyllis Green, Isle Royale National Park, CRMP/EA, 800 E. Lakeshore Drive, Houghton, Michigan 49931.