# National Trail Study and Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Ala Kahakai Hawai'i Island, Hawaii County, Hawaii; Notice of Availability

> Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more.

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A98-8275

## Record

- **Collection:** Federal Register
- **Document type:** Notice
- **Published:** March 30, 1998
- **Citation:** 63 FR 15213

## Text

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

National Trail Study and Final Environmental Impact Statement for
the Ala Kahakai Hawai'i Island, Hawaii County, Hawaii; Notice of
Availability

SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 (Pub. L. 91-190 as amended), the National Park
Service, Department of the Interior, has prepared a Final Environmental
Impact Statement (FEIS) which provides an analysis of whether the Ala
Kahakai is nationally significant and whether it is feasible and
desirable to add it to the National Trails System. The FEIS includes
Letters of Comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement and
responses from the National Park Service. To assist Congress in gauging
the feasibility, the study analyzes a range of options for managing the
trail.

Findings: The study concludes that the Ala Kahakai is significant
(1) under the three criteria for national historic trails outlined in
the National Trails System Act, as amended; (2) under National Register
of Historic Places criteria A, B, C, and D; and (3) as a traditional
cultural property. The study concludes that establishing a continuous
trail is physically feasible.
The study concludes that desirability of recognizing the trail
rests on two key items: first, communities along the trail corridor,
native Hawaiians, and landowners all be involved in planning and
implementing the trail; and second, adequate funding must be ensured at
the time the trail is designated to fully protect cultural and natural
resources.
At their November 21, 1997 meeting, the National Park System
Advisory Board recommended a finding that the trail does have national
historic significance based on the criteria develop under the Historic
Sites Act of 1935.

[[Page 15214]]

Alternatives and Recommendation: The study examines four
alternatives for future protection, interpretation, and management of
the Ala Kahakai: a no-action alternative, a national historic trail
(continuous), a state historic trail, and a national historic trail
(discontinuous). Additional alternatives which were considered but
rejected are summarized. The 60-day public review of the draft EIS
ended on October 17, 1997. Four public meetings were held on September
3-5, 1997, in Captain Cook, Waimea, and Hilo. The final study concludes
that the national historic trail (continuous) is the environmentally
preferred alternative.
The environmental consequences and corresponding mitigations of the
alternatives are evaluated in the document. It is anticipated that with
funding adequate to implement the recommended planning and management,
potential adverse environmental impacts of the action alternatives can
be minimized or eliminated. After a 30-day no-action period, the
National Park Service will prepare a Record of Decision. It will be
forwarded along with the final study to the Secretary of the Interior
to be transmitted to the Congress of the United States. Congress will
decide which alternative is selected.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The no-action period for this document will
end 30 days after the Environmental Protection Agency's listing of the
FEIS is published in the Federal Register. Comments may be submitted
during this period and should be addressed to Superintendent, Pacific
Great Basin Support Office, National Park Service, 600 Harrison Street,
Suite 600, San Francisco, California 94107, Attention: Meredith Kaplan.
For additional information, please write the National Park Service at
that address or telephone 415-427-1438.
Copies of the study FEIS are available at the Pacific Great Basin
Support Office at the above address and at the National Park Service
Pacific Island Support Office, 300 Ala Moana Boulevard, Room 6305,
Honolulu, HI 96850.

Dated: March 23, 1998.
Holly Bundock,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific West.
[FR Doc. 98-8275 Filed 3-27-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-P

---

Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A98-8275. Public record. Not legal advice.