Three years ago, a series of events related to access to private property within Wrangell-St. Elias National Park started a remarkable process that has reached an important milestone this summer.
We are publishing an interim regional policy, “A User’s Guide to Accessing Inholdings in a National Park Service Area in Alaska.” That title may not cause bells and whistles to immediately sound off, but the document represents a significant accomplishment on the part of scores of landowners, businesses, and state and federal employees. All who had a hand in its crafting can be proud of the product.
What is that product? First, a little context. Alaska is home to more than 54 million acres of national parkland. Within those boundaries are about 1.6 million acres of non-federal land, a mix of generally large parcels of Native corporation and state or university land, and smaller parcels of privately owned property such as mining claims.
Some have obvious access along state roads. Others are on rivers where boat
access makes the most sense. Many have overland access routes which cross national parkland. In most cases, that access has never been officially documented.
Title 11 of the Alaska Lands Act guarantees the right of access to non-federal lands within parks, subject to reasonable regulation to protect the underlying park resources. In the 27 years since ANILCA passed, the NPS has never had a consistent policy or process in documenting those access routes or in handling requests for new routes. Our new Access Guide is designed to provide a consistent approach by managers and to allow property owners to understand
both their rights and responsibilities.
Our first attempts at writing the guide were flawed. Landowners, interest groups and others were not shy in pointing that out. Members and staff of the Resource Development Council were among those who helped us find a different and better path. At their urging, we held stakeholder meetings that included executives from Chugach Alaska, Ahtna, Doyon, the University of Alaska, the Alaska Miners Association, the Alaska Land Rights Coalition, Residents of the Wrangells, the State of Alaska and representatives of environmental groups. We held public meetings in Fairbanks and Slana, in McCarthy and Anchorage, and heard first hand from property owners how we were progressing.
The result of a process that put two draft guides out for public review, and used multiple stakeholder meetings, is a guide that – we believe – meets the needs of landowners and meets our responsibilities as stewards of national parks.
We took to heart several suggestions from the public.
We heard that while we were clearly mapping out procedures, our larger intent remained unclear. The access guide now includes guiding principles which acknowledge, among other things, the guarantees of ANILCA 1110(b), that our processes should be simple, and that residents within national park areas are
part of the essential fabric of those parks.
We heard concerns about costs, especially from landowners who were happy with their existing access. The decision was made that the evaluation of an access route through an environmental assessment will be free to the landowner. Federal regulations require requesters to share the cost of more complex environmental impact statements.
Many commenters felt that ANILCA provided a permanent right of access, and that rights of way should not be for a set number of years. After some lengthy consideration, we agreed. The guide provides an indefinite term for the right of way, so long as needs and conditions remain stable.
Many people also bristled at the notion of applying for a “permit.” We will instead authorize ANILCA 1110(b) right of ways.
This summer, the National Park Service will start an environmental assessment on about 40 existing access routes within Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve as our first “test drive” of the access guide. Our staff, landowners and others will recommend changes as we move through the documentation and authorization process.
We believe this summer’s guide is a far better product thanks to the input of the Resource Development Council and many others. Our mutual success will depend on keeping these lines of communication open and active. We look forward to your continued involvement.
The interim access guide will soon be available on the web at www.nps.gov/akso/AccessGuide.htm
Marcia Blaszak is the Alaska Regional Director of the National Park Service.
