The Negotiated Rulemaking Committee met on Feb. 26, 2009. The plan was to review subcommittee work then meet again on Feb. 27, 2009 to write final summaries. Unfortunately the subcommittee was not successful in coming up with a single proposal. Instead two proposals (Access Group and Environmental/Pedestrian Group) were presented.
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Closed To ORV Use |
Open To ORV Use |
Seasonally Open To ORV Use |
|
Access Group |
33% |
48% |
19% |
|
Environmental/Pedestrian Group |
25% |
56% |
19% |
The Environmental/Pedestrian Group proposal closed Oregon Inlet year around, had just ½ mile of beach open from Ramp 45 to Frisco, just ½ mile open from Ramp 55 to Hatteras Inlet and North Ocracoke closed year around. When presented to the committee the 18 voted for the Access Group Proposal, 2 stood down (Mike Murray from NPS and Pete Benjamin from USFWS), and 5 voted against it (Audubon, Golder Walker, Defenders of Wildlife, Jason Rylander, Neil Moore, Cape Hatteras Bird Club, Steve Kayota, Frisco Non-Resident Home Owner and Jim Lyons, Recreational Alliance).
Official Press Releases from OBPA and Dare & Hyde County are presented below. Comments regarding the reason for failure can be found at the Island Free Press along with a link to the final reports. You will note that the Environmental Groups assert that they did bargain in good faith. In this regard, the following table briefly shows how the two sides negotiated at Reg. Neg. The percentage shown is the percent of Seashore shoreline. A detailed comparison can be found at Dare County. Note that while the Access Group gave up more and more access, the Environmental group took more continually decreased ORV access.
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|
Closed To ORV Use |
Open To ORV Use |
Seasonally Open To ORV Use |
|
Access Group |
19% |
62% |
19% |
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October 2008 |
25% |
56% |
19% |
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February 17, 2009 |
33% |
48% |
19% |
Here is how the Environmental Group negotiated:
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Environmental Group |
58% |
37% |
5% |
|
February 17, 2009 |
63% |
28% |
8% |
Outer Banks Preservation Association
North Carolina Beach Buggy Association
Cape Hatteras Anglers Club
Contact: John Couch FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tel 252 995-4955 February 26, 2009
Email: obpaouterbanks@gmail.com
CAPE HATTERAS REG-NEG CONCLUDES
After 14 months, plus 5 days of intense negotiations in a 9 member integrated subcommittee, the Federal Advisory Committee, formed to advise the National Park Service (NPS) on an ORV management plan for the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area, has concluded with nothing but a matrix of differences and few agreements. What was supposed to be a negotiation, free from litigation, was marred from the beginning when Defenders Of Wildlife and National Audubon Society filed suit, shortly after the announcement of the committee. This suit resulted in a consent decree that took the management of the Seashore out of the hands of the NPS, closed vast areas of the Seashore during the summer tourist season and caused economic loss to the eight villages within the Seashore boundaries, the Outer Banks and the state of North Carolina.
In 1937 Congress established the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area with enabling legislation that states: “said area shall be, and is, established, dedicated, and set apart as a national seashore recreational area for the benefit and enjoyment of the people and shall be known as the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area.”
We will now go forward to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process with the anticipation that when the management of this recreational area is returned to the NPS, they will faithfully carry out their dual mandate of resource protection and public access.
We ask the NPS to recognize that the culture and heritage of Bodie Island, Hatteras Island and Ocracoke Island were built on a foundation of vehicle access to the ocean beaches and the unique nature of a park unit that has a robust economy within its jurisdiction.
ISSUED IN CONJUNCTION WITH HYDE COUNTY, NC
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For Immediate Release February 26, 2009
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Contact: Warren Judge, Chairman Dare County Board of Commissioners 252-473-8250 Warrenj@darenc.com |
No Consensus Reached Regarding Beach Access
at Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area
The committee tasked with assisting the National Park Service in the development of a long term management plan governing beach access in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area has failed to reach consensus. The committee, which includes 29 members selected by the National Park Service and representing various stakeholder organizations, has been meeting routinely since 2007 to reach unanimous consensus for a preferred alternative to manage the country’s first National Seashore, the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area, located on North Carolina’s Outer Banks.
“We are disappointed and concerned,” said Warren Judge, Chairman of the Dare County Board of Commissioners and a member of the negotiating committee. “People from all over America have a tradition of enjoying these beaches with their friends and family. We will continue to work to preserve access here and at National Parks and Recreational Areas across the country so that future generations will be able to share this heritage with their children and grandchildren.”
Larry Hardham, President of the Cape Hatteras Anglers Club, also served as a member of the committee working to reach consensus. Hardham, expressing his frustration with the proceedings said, “It became clear that consensus would be difficult because of a few who were unwilling to compromise in any way. The lawsuit filed by the Audubon Society and Defenders of Wildlife, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, started the destruction of good faith negotiations.” These sentiments were echoed by Hyde County Commissioner Eugene Ballance, a commercial fisherman and member of the committee.
After the final committee meeting, Warren Judge looked to the future. “Although we are very disappointed with the outcome of the negotiated rulemaking,” he said, “We cannot give up. Our residents, visitors and business community all depend on open and accessible beaches.” Judge added, “We urge people everywhere to stay involved in the issue through websites such as PreserveBeachAccess.org.”
Management of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area is currently under a consent decree resulting from a lawsuit filed by the Audubon Society and Defenders of Wildlife, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center. The consent decree remains in effect until 2011 when the long term management plan becomes effective, unless legislation introduced in Congress returns control of the area to the Interim Management Plan of the National Park Service (House Bill 718).
Dare County Public Relations Department
(252) 475-5900 – Office
(252) 473-4594 – Fax