The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) are seeking public comment on an Environmental Assessment for the proposed development of a new 3-acre shooting range within a former 6-acre sand pit near the village of Fall Creek in central Eau Claire County.
Eau Claire County owns the property, supports range development and has agreed to make the site available for public use for at least twenty years. The site is located within the 52,000-acre Eau Claire County Forest. Shooting ranges are an acceptable use of county forest land according to the County Forest Ten Year Management Plan.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the DNR will seek public input during a 30-day comment period ending April 4, 2005.
The county forest is primarily managed for timber management and multi-purpose recreation. The sand pit has not been used as a source for sand borrow material for at least 10 years. The site has more recently been used for haphazard shooting practice and as an unauthorized ATV trail and as a general household litter dump site.
The proposed range site plan calls for two shooting lanes with side and back berms consistent with National Rifle Association-approved design standards, two graveled 9-vehicle parking areas, walkways, shooting benches and signs. Local volunteers would operate and maintain the range according to pre-agreed conditions including free public daytime access year-round, grass mowing, litter control, etc.
The second action alternative analyzed in the Environmental Assessment would construct a larger range at the same site. A third "No Action" alternative is also considered, as required by the National Environmental Policy Act, which would maintain the site and usage as it currently exists.
Range development is consistent with DNR statewide efforts to meet recreational shooting demand and expand hunter skills, safety and education opportunities.
In cooperation with the Service, the DNR is gathering information and public comment regarding the draft Environmental Assessment for the proposed project. Each agency will make an independent decision on the EA in accordance with their respective environmental regulations. If public comments indicate there are additional issues not covered in the draft EA, these issues will be addressed in the final EA. A preliminary determination has been made that an Environmental Impact Statement is not required.
The proposed project is also being reviewed under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. The area of potential effect for this undertaking is the entire 6-acre former sand pit and the view shed of up to a mile distant. The public is requested to inform DNR or the Service about archeological sites, buildings and structures, historic places, cemeteries, and traditional uses of the area that could influence decisions about the project.
Copies of the draft EA can be obtained by writing to Tom Lovejoy, DNR West Central Region Headquarters, 1300 West Clairemont Avenue, Eau Claire, WI 54702, calling (715) 839-3747 or e-mailing or via fax to (715)839-6076.
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 Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 63 Fish and Wildlife Management offices and 81 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 Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
