HVNP Final GMP/WS/EIS Available for View

Final General Management Plan/Wilderness Study/Environmental Impact Statement cover.

Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park’s Abbreviated Final General Management Plan/Widerness Study/Environmental Impact Statement is available for review.

Long-term management guidance regarding the preservation and use of the park, UNESCO World Heritage Site, and International Biosphere Reserve in included in the plan.

The years-long planning process included public meetings, as well as formal comments through mail, comment forms, and website forums.

In May 2015, the National Park Service released a Draft GMP/WS/EIS, which was followed by a review and comment period.

According to NPS officials, 32 different forms of correspondence regarding the plan were received. Alternative 2 was then selected as the preferred method and the management actions within it were selected as the best long-term guide of HVNP.

“It’s vital to have a comprehensive plan that guides management decisions as we enter into our next 100 years of protecting this extraordinary park for future generations,” said Superintendent Cindy Orlando.

Only minor responses and editorial changes were made to the Draft GMP/WS/EIS. As a result, the Final GMP/WS/EIS is an abbreviated form.

NPS says there are no substantial changes to the alternatives or the impact analyses presented in the Draft GMP/WS/EIS, and Alternative 2 remains the preferred alternative.

The abbreviated format of the final plan has allowed the NPS to produce a simple, brief document and to avoid the costly reprinting of the entire 500-plus page document.

Following the public release of the Abbreviated Final GMP/WS/EIS, a 30-day no-action period will occur, after which the NPS will prepare a record of decision to document the selected alternative.

During the no-action period, the public can provide comments on the plan at the Park Planning website. 

CDs of the documents, as well as the full abbreviated final document, have been distributed to all of the public libraries on the Big Island.