Public comment opens for Pacific NW National Scenic Trail comprehensive plan development

October 13, 2022 1:30 am
The Pacific Northwest Trail (PNT) is a 1200-mile hiking trail running from the Continental Divide in Montana to the Pacific Ocean on Washington’s Olympic Coast.
The Pacific Northwest Trail (PNT) is a 1200-mile hiking trail running from the Continental Divide in Montana to the Pacific Ocean on Washington’s Olympic Coast.

Scoping period for development of Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail comprehensive plan and environmental analysis has begun and is open for public comment through Oct. 30.

The Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail is one of the nation’s newest national scenic trails, located in Montana, Idaho, and Washington.

The Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail was designated by Congress as part of the National Trails System in 2009. The route of approximately 1,200 miles, from the Continental Divide to the Pacific Ocean, provides opportunities for long-distance hiking and other non-motorized recreation. Most of the route is in place, on existing roads or trails, and available for public use.

The project area includes portions of seven national forests: the Flathead, Kootenai, and Idaho Panhandle National Forests in the Forest Service’s Northern Region, and the Colville, Okanogan-Wenatchee, Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie, and Olympic National Forests in the Pacific Northwest Region. It also includes lands managed by the National Park Service in Glacier National Park, the North Cascades National Park Complex, and Olympic National Park, as well as lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Washington. Portions of the project area are within the Colville Reservation and Swinomish Reservation.

The project area includes land in the following counties: in Montana – Glacier, Flathead and Lincoln counties; in Idaho – Boundary and Bonner counties; in Washington – Pend Oreille, Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan, Whatcom, Skagit, Island, Jefferson, and Clallam counties.

The Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail comprehensive plan project goals are to fulfill legislative requirements from the National Trails System Act, to ensure future administration and management of the trail provides for its nature and purposes, and to ensure this administration and management safeguards the values for which the trail was designated.

The scoping document can be downloaded from the Pacific Northwest Region’s project website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=52259, or contact the project lead, Becky Blanchard, at becky.blanchard@usda.gov or 503-808-2449 to receive a copy of the scoping document via email or mail.

The 30-day scoping comment period opens today, September 29, 2022. The purpose of scoping is for the Forest Service to identify important issues and determine the extent of analysis necessary for an informed decision on a proposal.

Comments may be submitted electronically through the online portal at https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public/CommentInput?project=52259 by selecting the “Comment on Project” link in the “Get Connected” group at the right-hand side of the project webpage.

If you are not able to access the online comment form, you may submit comments by regular mail to Pacific Northwest Regional Forester’s Office; Attention: Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail Comprehensive Plan Comments; 1220 SW 3rd Avenue, Suite 1700; Portland, Oregon 97204.

Comments received after the close of the 30-day comment period will be considered but will not have standing.