Opportunity to influence the future of the forest offered at National Monument Planning Meetings

Ralph Ortiz and I attended the first of five meetings on the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument “Need to Change” document on June 22. The meetings, five in all, take place every evening this week.

These are open house style gatherings with the USFS’s best communicators and most knowledgable staff. There are some nine or the maps with overlays that deal with every aspect of the Angeles National Forest (ANF) and San Gabriels - the “Need to Change” document is brief, the large maps illustrate the points that the documents make, and the larger planning documents upon which all of the information is founded are available on either a dvd or cd that is provided at the meeting. It can also be downloaded.

What is significant about this format is that it makes the groups and individuals with an interest in the Angeles be responsible for and knowledgable about the information they in turn feed back to the USFS in the planning process.

What is also very significant is that this changeover process from National Forest to National Monument allows groups and individuals an opportunity to inform the process. This is a forty five day window to influence the future that did not previously exist.

This is critical: IF YOU DO NOT COMMENT NOW IN THE NEED TO CHANGE DOCUMENT, YOU CANNOT OPPOSE THE FINAL DRAFT PLAN WHICH WILL BE GENERATED AFTER THE COMMENT PERIOD ENDS.

If you want to have a voice in the future of the forest, you can, but you must participate in the process before July 30, 2015.

All aspects of the Need to Change plan may be approached and discussed in person at these open house meetings, and in comments. Many of the current management policies and practices do not need to be changed, but they can still be addressed during the comment period.

For example, if you are outside the Monument boundary but you will be affected by decisions made within the boundary, this is the time to get informed about the process and offer feedback. Another example; if you are a trail user and your favorite trail is presently closed, if you would like an area opened to OHV use, if you know of a certain resource that you feel should be protected and you notice that it is not on a map, this is the time to approach and comment on that resource.

Everyone’s comments will be considered, whether they are general or specific; this is the time to address your ideas, visions, concerns and your own thoughts about changes to the management of the National Monument and the Angeles National Forest as a whole.

Because there was so much information to try to absorb, I shot two videos during my conversation with USFS representative Donn Christiansen, who spent about an hour walking me through my questions, which range form “What does this mean?” To very specific issues.
Think of them as sound recordings - I’m not even sure what I was pointing the camera at, but the longer one I believe was when we were discussing property owner/access issues and the shorter one when we were discussing transportation. I will be happy to share these.

Please attend one or more of the next four meetings and take the time to offer the USFS your concerns, ideas, goals and thoughts. Click the link below to go directly to the meeting information:

http://www.anfs.info/news-aviator/usfsmeetings