Draft General Management Plan
Latest Public Comment Period
Closed on June 30, 2009
To view the GMP process, newsletters and draft alternatives issued to this date visit click the link (below), select Effigy Mounds National Monument from the drop down list and then select General Management Plan.
General Management Plan ("GMP")
The National Park Service is planning for the future of EffigyMounds National Monument. A general management plan will be developed to establish a general framework to guide future management decision making. This will determine how the park will address resource management, visitor uses, development needs, and interpretation or education issues for the next 15 to 20 years.
The planning team will work closely with federal, state, and local agencies, interested parties, and the public. We want you to participate in this planning process.
Effigy Mounds National Monument was established by Presidential Proclamation 2860 on October 25, 1949, to protect significant prehistoric earth mounds found in northeast Iowa and to protect wildlife, scenic, and other natural values of the area.The Monument preserves outstanding representative examples of significant phases of prehistoric Indian mound-building cultures in the American Midwest; protects wildlife and natural values within the monument; and provides for scientific study and appreciation of its features – for the benefit of this and future generations.
GMP Process to this Date:
> In November 2005, the park received comments from the public at several scoping meetings regarding what their vision of the park was in the future. These comments along with park staff suggestions were used to create three preliminary management alternatives for the park.
> During January 2007, the National Park Service conducted two meetings to inform the public of these preliminary alternatives and to receive their comments about the development of potential management alternatives for Effigy Mounds National Monument's general management plan. The public was given an opportunity to share their thoughts on which alternative they preferred, select options from any of the alternatives that they believed should be part of the park’s management strategy, or add to the list of options to be considered. This was followed by a public comment period regarding the preliminary management alternatives, which ended during the Spring of 2007.
Meetings and the comments received have provided members of the General Management Plan Team with the public’s view of what preliminary alternatives were acceptable and which were not. The team then met to develop the National Park Service’s preferred alternative.
> On May 1, 2009; a draft GMP document was issued for public comment and review. The issue and public comment period will last until June 29, 2009.
The draft General Management Plan (GMP) for Effigy Mounds National Monument is now available for public review. The purpose of this plan is to provide a framework for managing the park for the next 15-20 years. Your comments on the draft plan are welcome.
This draft plan considers three alternatives for future management of the park. Alternative A is a "no action" alternative, in which we would continue what we are doing now. Alternative C would emphasize the relationship between the natural and cultural resources of the monument, and would include increased formal education and outreach programs. We have selected Alternative B as our preferred alternative. A major feature of this alternative would be the construction of a new multi-purpose center with a regional research facility near the visitor center to serve as both a focal point for mound research and a central location for scholars of moundbuilding to meet and hold symposia. The visitor center would undergo interior reconfiguration to improve visitor service and administrative functions. This alternative also proposes boundary changes to enable a visitor contact station to be built at Sny Magill in the future, and proposes to build carefully designed trails at Sny Magill that protect the mounds yet provide universal access to the area.
The draft plan includes more detail about what would happen under each of the alternatives and what the environmental impacts of each alternative would be. Complete copies of this plan are available to download from this website or at the Monument's visitor center. You may also call 563-873-3491 to request a copy. We will hold a public meeting on Tuesday, May 19th at 7 PM at the park's visitor center to discuss the draft plan, answer questions, and hear your feedback. Before this meeting, on May 16th and 17th, the visitor center will have displays on some of the elements of the plan and staff will be available to answer your questions. I hope you are able to attend this weekend open house and/or the meeting on the evening of the 19th to share your thoughts. We are also accepting public comments through this website or in writing. The public comment period will be open for 60 days. Thank you for your interest in the future of our park. I look forward to hearing from you.
Public input is essential to the planning process, so it is hoped that you’ll plan to attend and / or contribute your thoughts, thoughout the remainder of the process.
The park staff wishes to thank you for your time, thoughtful comments, and continued interest in this process and the future of Effigy Mounds National Monument. Many of you have expressed specific ideas and concerns about the monument and its future. Your input has been, and will continue to be, invaluable in helping us develop a management plan that will make a lasting difference in longterm management.
To view the GMP process, newsletters and draft alternatives issued to this date visit click the link (below), select Effigy Mounds National Monument from the drop down list and then select General Management Plan.
For additional information or to put your name on the mailing list to receive the newsletter before the public meeting dates, please call (563) 873.3491
