New rules for protecting land in the National Park system. Consistent compliance needed

Technical Report · Thu Oct 31 04:00:00 EST 1985

OSTI ID:6253696

In May 1982 the Department of the Interior implemented a policy that requires the National Park Service to prepare land protection plans. These plans both identify the land and degrees of title to that land needed by the federal government to protect the resource and designate cost-effective alternatives to full federal purchase, such as easements. GAO found that 25 of the 38 land protection plans it reviewed did not implement interior policy or comply with National Park Service rules, with instances of noncompliance affecting 213,000 of the 823,000 nonfederal acres these 25 plans encompass. This noncompliance occurred because the Park Service did not consistently follow rules when preparing the plans or reviewing the draft plans at headquarters. In addition, headquarters did not perform required follow-up to determine if changes identified during the headquarters reviews were made in the final, approved plans. If the Park Service implements the plans' recommendations that do not comply with its rules, it could acquire more interest in land than it needs, incur unnecessary acquisition costs, and deplete the limited funds available for land protection.

• Research Organization: General Accounting Office, Washington, DC (USA). Resources, Community and Economic Development Div.
• OSTI ID: 6253696
• Report Number(s): GAO/RCED-86-16; ON: TI86900606
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290400* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Energy Resources
COMPLIANCE
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
LAND OWNERSHIP
LAND REQUIREMENTS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NATURE RESERVES
OWNERSHIP
PLANNING
RESOURCES
US DOI
US ORGANIZATIONS