Giant Sequoia National Monument Management Plan

The Giant Sequoia National Monument (Monument) is a publicly owned treasure in California's southern Sierra Nevada. The Monument's diverse geologic formations, ecosystems, and human history hold unique opportunities for public education, scientific study, and recreation. The Monument covers 328,000 acres of the Sequoia National Forest.

On September 4, 2012, Forest Supervisor Kevin B. Elliott released a new Giant Sequoia National Monument Management Plan (Monument Plan). The Monument Plan guides restoration efforts for giant sequoia ecosystems, watersheds, habitat for old-forest dependent wildlife, and the protection of mountain communities.

Regional Forester, Randy Moore, selected Alternative B and one element of Alternative E (Moses Wilderness recommendation) as the basis for the Monument Plan. Release of these final documents culminates years of collaborative efforts with multiple agencies, the scientific community, and an engaged public to develop management direction based on public collaboration and current science.

The Record of Decision (ROD), Monument Plan, and Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) are available for review using the PDFs of the ROD, Monument Plan, and FEIS link here or in the sidebar to the right. The file sizes of some of the documents and maps are quite large so, if high-speed internet is not available, please contact our office to request a CD.

The Science Review Process

The Science Review Panel conducted a science consistency review of the FEIS in December 2011 and submitted their report to the Forest Service in January 2012. A copy of this report and the Forest Service response is available for review in Appendix F to the FEIS (see the PDFs link to the right) and on the Science page of this website.

Background

After the first Monument Plan was remanded in 2006, the Forest Service began the process for developing a new plan to guide the management of the Monument. A significant portion of the planning process has involved public involvement and collaboration. After the scoping period and development of draft alternatives, the interdisciplinary team used your input to develop and analyze the alternatives considered in detail. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)and Draft Management Plan were released and available for public comment between August 6 and December 3, 2010.

The Forest Service heard from more than 79,000 respondents on the DEIS and draft management plan. Concerns raised by the public were used to improve and make corrections to the analysis in the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) and the Monument Plan. The Record of Decision (ROD), Final Monument Plan, and FEIS have now been published (see the PDFs link to the right).

Please use the links in the sidebar to the right to explore the final documents, the background and history of the Monument, the active role Science has had in Monument planning and the work of the Science Review Panel, a review of the Mediated Settlement Agreement, and partnership and recreational opportunities in the Monument.