Non-Native Aquatic Species EA Scoping Comments 1 CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED FROM THE PUBLIC ON THE SCOPE OF THE EXPANDED NON-NATIVE AQUATIC SPECIES MANAGEMENT PLAN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT Note to Reader: The comments contained in this Appendix were entered into and exported from an online comment database. Greetings, salutations, and concluding thank you statements have been removed, except in letters provided as attachments to comments. In some cases, the comment system translated commenter input into stray characters that were undecipherable; we have attempted to represent those comments as accurately as possible, but in some cases, ambiguity concerning the commenter’s intent remains. 1 There should be a high catch limit (10 or more) or unlimited catch limit on Rainbow Trout and Brown Trout. Also, the NPS should recognize Navajo Nation's boundaries to include the mid river point of the Colorado River where the Navajo Nation boundary meets with the Colorado River. 2 I write this on behalf of the Desert Fly Casters, an Arizona Angling Club headquartered in the Phoenix Metropolitan area, and an affiliate of the Fly Fishers International. As such, we are a formal part of the organization that sponsors the Recreational Fishing Representatives to the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program. We are several hundred members strong, and many of our members have long been frequent anglers on the Lees Ferry Rainbow Trout Fishery. Anglers from the Phoenix area surely make up amajor portion of those who visit and care about the Lees Ferry fishery. We have noted the request, as copied below, asking for an extension of the proposed comment period and for an additional public meeting in the Phoenix area for the subject EA. That request has been sent to you by thoseGCDAMP representatives, John Jordan, John Hamill and Joe Miller, and we want to strongly add our voice tothat request. In the past, Our organization and individual members have commented on the CFMP EA and on the LTEMP EIS, and we certainly want to comment on this proposed action by the NPS. But we feel that the present comment period and the proposed public meeting locations as now scheduled do not provide us a reasonable opportunity to participate in that process. We specifically ask that the comment period be extended by 30 days, and that a public meeting be scheduled in the Phoenix area so that we may equitably participate in this public process. Please advise us that you will accommodate that request, and of the additional date and location of the additional meeting. 3 As President of the Grand Canyon Chapter of Trout Unlimited I have two comments. Non-Native Aquatic Species EA Scoping Comments 2 1. We would like the comment period to be extended beyond the holiday period. Many of our members, officers and board members are out of the area and we would like time to meet and discuss this proposal. 2. We think you should also have a meeting in the Phoenix area. While meetings in Flagstaff and Page are great many of the anglers that come to Lee's Ferry are from the Phoenix Metro area. If you have a meeting in Phoenix it would also allow people from Tucson to attend. 4 The Non-native Aquatic Species EA Scoping has arrived and brings with it a couple of requests. Those of us representing a coalition of Trout Unlimited, International Federation of Fly Fishers, community fishingclubs, individual anglers, and recreational fishing for the GCDAMP believe that it is in the best interest of the EA to extend the participation period by thirty days to a total of sixty days and to add an additional public open house. These requests are relevant to shaping a final preferred alternative. Preferred Alternative B, in its present form, has elements that border on unacceptable and have the likely hood of being highly contentious and strongly opposed by the angling community both procedurally and politically. Those elements need to be confronted and resolved for a successful EA. The thirty day public scoping period is hardly adequate with a starting date from the date of public announcement, spread over a holiday period, and without the reviewed final product of the brown trout workshop integrated in to the alternatives. There has been a pattern in the past of announcing November/December thirty day commenting periods that while serving Federal agency purposes does not serve the impacted parties. With that in mind a total sixty day scoping period is requested, which should also provide for the finalized brown trout white paper to help shape a preferred alternative. The public scoping webinar and two open houses are good steps for engaging the public. However, webinars as informative as they may be are inadequate for meaningful interaction at a productive level. Having an open house in Page is commendable and provides a participation opportunity for the Marble Canyon community and businesses that are most dependent on the Lees Ferry trout fishery and will be most affected by the EA. While a Flagstaff meeting is also desirable the base for affected anglers is in and around Phoenix. The intent of the scoping period should be to obtain meaningful and constructive comment leading towards an informed alternative decision that will be acceptable across the broadest spectrum possible. It would be unfortunate if there was the perception that not having a Phoenix open house was intentional rather than an over site. With that in mind a Phoenix area public open house meeting is requested. 5 It has come to our attention that the new Non-native Species Management Plan and EA Scoping process only has two meetings scheduled in northern Arizona and a 30 day comment period. One behalf of myself and the entire business community of Marble Canyon-Lees Ferry, we urge consideration to expand these public meeting to include other areas of the state as well as extend Non-Native Aquatic Species EA Scoping Comments 3 the comment period to at least 60 or 90 days. Lees Ferry is a trout fishing recreation destination for people from all over the state of Arizona (as well as nationally) and to limit the public meetings to the geographic northern part of the state and to a 30 day comment period is going to exclude many who wish their voices to be heard. A longer comment period and meetings in Phoenix (and perhaps Tucson) are appropriate for a fair opportunity for public comment and involvement. 6 The Payson Flycasters and Gila Trout Chapter of Trout Unlimited also encourage you as did John Jordon, John Hamill and Joe Miller to extend the EA Scoping period from 30 to 60 days and add a public open house on the matter in the Phoenix area. 7 We represent the Sun City Grand Fishing Club. We are a group of 100+ men and women who enjoysport fishing mostly around Arizona. Our members live in Surprise Arizona, in the Phoenix metro area. We have monitored the study process of the Lees Ferry fishery for many years and our members enjoy fishing there, often doing overnight trips which include spending money on lodging and hiring guides. In recent years as the fishing has been less consistent our trips have diminished, whether that is caused by the high flow events or whatever, it has impacted our use and enjoyment of this fine resource. We look forward to improved conditions for fishing at Lees Ferry. We are informed the new Non-native Aquatic Species EA Scoping has arrived and only allows for a 30 day comment period. At this time of year when many of our members are traveling, this hardly allows for our input. We also note there are meetings in Page and Flagstaff which is good, but nothing in the Phoenix area where a significant number of the Lees Ferry sport fishers live. We would request that more time be allowed for comment and that you have a public meeting in the Phoenix area which we will attend. 8 I am in receipt of a copy of the "Expanded Non-native Aquatic Species Management Plan in GlenCanyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park below Glen Canyon Dam AnEnvironmental Assessment. Having read through this document, please consider the following: 1) Public meetings in Page and Flagstaff are fine for the folks who live in that area. However, most Arizona residents are in Phoenix and Tucson, well south of either Flagstaff or Page. For people in Tucson, travel to Flagstaff is nearly a 600-mile round trip and will require an overnight stay. Those in Phoenix are somewhat closer (350-mile round trip), but still a long car ride, and perhaps without the overnight stay. Since you are asking for public input and most of the public are in Phoenix and Tucson, why not schedule an additional public meeting in the Phoenix area to accommodate those in the population centers of the State? A webinar, while informative, is not the same as face-to-face, two-way conversation. 2) The 30-day public scoping period seems inadequate, especially if another public meeting can be incorporated into the process. In fact, the scoping period will have ended by the time the Non-Native Aquatic Species EA Scoping Comments 4 white paper from the brown trout workshop, held in Phoenix September 21-22, is available for review. Perhaps extending the scoping period by an additional 30 days will allow for receipt and review of this document, and to incorporate any findings into the remedial action plan. The NPS preferred plan, Preferred Alternate B, will certainly generate interest and comment from the angling community, most of whom live in central and southern Arizona.