The public "open house" meeting will be held in two sessions-- 2-5 p.m. and 7-10 p.m.--at the Charlevoix City Hall. Representatives from the Service and State will be available to brief individuals or small groups, discuss the issues and record comments during the informal meeting. The proposal was published today in the Federal Register. In addition to accepting comments from the public at the meeting, the Service will accept formal comments until October 23, 2000. Comments can be sent by mail to Regional Director, Region 3, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1 Federal Drive, Ft. Snelling MN 55111, or via electronic mail at: fw3foxisland@fws.gov
Comments will be incorporated into an Environmental Assessment to be written by the Michigan DNR in cooperation with the Service. The Assessment will evaluate issues relating to the proposed exchange that, if approved, will consolidate State ownership to approximately the northern one-third of the island. The State now owns 1,230 acres or 36 percent of the island, but the ownership is interspersed with private tracts in a checkerboard fashion. The exchange as proposed would leave the State with 1,138 acres, or 33 percent of the island. An additional 230 acres (7 percent) would be protected from development by conservation easements to the State. The conservation easement conservation easement
A conservation easement is a voluntary legal agreement between a landowner and a government agency or qualified conservation organization that restricts the type and amount of development that may take place on a property in the future. Conservation easements aim to protect habitat for birds, fish and other wildlife by limiting residential, industrial or commercial development. Contracts may prohibit alteration of the natural topography, conversion of native grassland to cropland, drainage of wetland and establishment of game farms. Easement land remains in private ownership.
Learn more about conservation easement lands include spectacular dune formations on the west side of the as well as the lighthouse property on the south tip. Both of these tracts would be privately owned.
According to the Michigan DNR, the proposed exchange would provide for greater public use of State-owned land while providing greater protection to dune areas and to habitat for the federally-endangered piping plover.
"Our meeting is designed to explain the details of the State of Michigans proposal and ask the citizens to help the State and the Service to make sure that no important issues are ignored," said Service Regional Director Bill Hartwig. "The State and the Service have been exploring proposals for South Fox for several years and we have identified several issues."
Some of the larger issues identified to date include:
- The South Fox Lighthouse facilities that are eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places and other historical or archeological resources may be present on the 115-acre State-owned tract with NPS interest. The National Historic Preservation Act and other laws require identification and consideration of these types of properties during project planning. As a result, the Service is seeking input on concerns regarding archeological sites, buildings and structures, historic events, sacred and traditional areas, and other historic preservation concerns.
- The National Park Service tract also includes proposed Critical Habitat for the Federally- Endangered Piping plover. The tract also contains Federally-Threatened Pitchers thistle, which is also present at other locations on the island.
- The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians has unresolved claims to title and other property rights on the island. There is an Indian cemetery on the island.
- There have been ongoing conflicts over trespass on both public and private land parcels on the island. Public access is ongoing issue.
The Service estimates that a completed draft Environmental Assessment will be available to the public by early November 2000. There will be another public information meeting and 30-day comment period after the draft is released.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Services manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System of more than 520 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit us on the Web at: http://midwest.fws.gov
