The San Juan National Forest has released a Draft Recreation Site Analysis and Plan of Work for public review and feedback. The plan proposes management changes for some of the National Forest's recreation sites and services, including campgrounds, toilets, trailheads and interpretive sites. Comments may be submitted until March 21.
The goal is to ensure the forest recreation program can continue into the future. The plan offers management recommendations for developed recreation sites only; other recreation program services will be analyzed and prioritized at a later date.
Recreation is a primary public use of the San Juan National Forest, and public lands are a key component of the tourism economies of Southwest Colorado. The long-term goal for the San Juan's developed recreation program is to manage recreation sites to high standards and within budget without compromising the quality of services, public safety, or creating undue impacts to natural resources.
The Draft Recreation Site Analysis and Plan of Work recommend site-management changes to meet that goal within the next five years. The draft documents, executive summary, and associated data tables and maps are available online at http://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/sanjuan/RSA.
Public feedback will be accepted until Monday, March 21, 2016. After that, the draft plan will be adjusted as needed and finalized this spring. Written public feedback should be mailed to Brian White, San Juan National Forest Recreation Program Manager, 15 Burnett Court, Durango, CO 81301, or sent via email to brianwhite@fs.fed.us.
Following release of the Final Recreation Site Analysis and Plan of Work, a forest-wide National Environmental Policy Act analysis will be initiated to analyze any significant actions to be implemented at identified recreation sites. It is anticipated a significant amount of this work will be conducted in 2016 and 2017.
For more information, contact White at 385-1246 or brianwhite@fs.fed.us.
