On April 13, 2015 we announced that CHAPA’s recommendations regarding changes to the Resource Management Program required by the new law were sent to the Superintendent for his consideration.  Since that communication, two additional events of which you should be aware have occurred.

On April 15, 2015 Gordon Myers, Executive Director of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission  provided information to the National Park Service (NPS) which included buffer and corridor and management practices  recommendations regarding North Carolina state species of concern, sea turtles and piping plovers at the Seashore.  This action was taken to help NPS fulfill the requirement of the new law that “…appropriate buffer protections for species not listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973…, but that are identified for protection under State law” be determined after coordinating with the State.

CHAPA supports the  NCWRC recommendations (click on link to read) and believe they provide sound  direction to NPS for the management of buffers and corridors in a manner that will balance resource protection and pedestrian / ORV access at the Seashore in a way that is consistent with the intent of the law.  We urge you to read this document.  You will find that the recommendations provided to NPS by CHAPA are consistent with those developed by NCRWC.

On April 22, 2015, Superintendent David Hallac provided an ORV Management Plan Update for the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. (Click on link to read.)  The update provided information of which you need to be aware.

• Reprioritization of Construction Projects

The Park Service has reprioritized and expedited the schedule of projects identified in the 2010 ORV Management Plan to emphasize projects that provide ORV and pedestrian access.

This action complies with  the section of the law titled “Construction of New Vehicle Access Points”  which states that new vehicle access points and roads should be constructed “…as expeditiously as practicable; and…in accordance with applicable management plans for the National Seashore.”  CHAPA priorities were sent to the Superintendent on March 5.  Following distribution, we met with the Superintendent and members of his staff to discuss.

CHAPA supports the projects and prioritizations announced by Superintendent Hallac and believe they will provide valuable improvements to access at the Seashore as intended.  We believe these projects are an appropriate use of the ORV fees which are collected at the Seashore, but we continue to urge the Park Service to seek cost effective solutions as it moves forward with these projects.

The project name and original and expedited schedules are in the table below:

• Public Meetings to Present  Proposed Actions to Modify Wildlife Buffers and Corridors

Superintendent Hallac also announced that five public meetings have been scheduled for the week of May 4, 2015 at which information about the NPS proposed actions with regard to the modification of wildlife buffers and corridors as required by the new law.

Meetings have been scheduled as follows:

Monday, May 4

Ocracoke, North Carolina

Ocracoke School, 1 Schoolhouse Road, Ocracoke, NC  27920

6 PM to 8 PM

Tuesday, May 5

Buxton, North Carolina

Cape Hatteras Secondary School, 48576 Hwy 12, Buxton, NC  27920

6 PM to 8 PM

Wednesday, May 6

Raleigh, North Carolina

NC State University Campus

McKimmon Conference and Training Center, 1101 Gorman Street, Raleigh, NC  27695

6 PM to 8 PM

Thursday, May 7

Hampton/ Norfolk, Virginia

Embassy Suites Hampton Roads, 1700 Coliseum Drive, Hampton, VA  23666

6 PM to 8 PM

Friday, May 8

Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

Hilton Garden Inn, 5353 N Virginia Dare Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC  27949

6 PM to 8 PM

Specifically, the law requires the National Park Service (NPS) to review and adjust Wildlife Protection Buffers by June 19, 2015.  This section of the law requires that “…buffers are of the shortest duration and cover the smallest area necessary to protect a species, as determined in accordance with peer-reviewed scientific data; and… designate pedestrian and vehicle corridors around areas of the Nations Seashore closed because of wildlife buffers, to allow access to areas that are open.”

CHAPA’s recommendations were sent to the Superintendent for his consideration on April 10, 2015.  We believe the recommendations offered can be implemented with minimal disruption to the NPS resource management processes already in place at the Seashore.  We also believe our recommendations will balance resource protection and pedestrian / ORV access at the Seashore in a way that is consistent with the intent of the law.

What You Should Do:

We ask you all to keep informed, to participate in the public meetings, and to make the Park Service aware of your reaction to their actions over the coming weeks and months as the law is implemented.  Public participation and input remain critical to the success of achieving our goals of more reasonable pedestrian and ORV access within the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area.  We will advise you when the NPS publishes their proposals for changes to buffers and corridors.  In addition to following our communications, we urge you to visit the NPS webpage titled   “2015 National Defense Authorization Act Actions Update” and to visit www.IslandFreePress.org to stay current with the latest information.