ST. GEORGE — The United States Department of the Interior will host two public meetings on Feb. 22 and 25 in Flagstaff and Tempe respectively and a public webinar on March 1 to answer questions and discuss the recently released Department of Interior draft environmental impact statement for the proposed long-term experimental and management plan for Glen Canyon Dam.

The long-term experimental and management plan is a framework proposed by the Department of the Interior for adaptively managing Glen Canyon Dam over the next 20 years with the goal of creating certainty and predictability for power and water users while protecting environmental and cultural resources in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Canyon National Park and the Colorado River ecosystem.

The draft environmental impact statement for the proposed long-term experimental and management plan was released to the public Jan. 8 and will be available for review and comment until April 7.

The National Park Service and the Bureau of Reclamation led the examination of seven possible alternatives in the draft environmental impact statement, including a preferred alternative that would provide assurances for water and power users while mitigating adverse impacts on Grand Canyon National Park. Research and proposed experimental actions under the plan will preserve and improve the resources in Glen Canyon and Grand Canyon while continuing to ensure that water and power needs are met.

The full statement is available for public review and commenting at the National Park Service Glen Canyon Long-Term Experimental and Management Plan Draft Environmental Impact Statement webpage. For more information about the draft environmental impact statement, go to the Glen Canyon LTEMP EIS website.

All three events being hosted by the Department of the Interior are open to the general public and will include subject matter experts from both the National Park Service and the Bureau of Reclamation who will be available to answer questions about the details of the draft environmental impact statement and the long-term experimental and and management plan.

Event details:

Public Meeting #1:

• When: Monday, Feb. 22, 6 p.m. MST
• Where: USGS Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center, 2255 N. Gemini Road, Flagstaff, Ariz.
• Directions/Map

Click here to register for meeting

Public Meeting #2:

• When: Thursday, Feb. 25, 6 p.m. MST
• Where: Embassy Suites Phoenix-Tempe, 4400 S. Rural Road, Tempe, Ariz.
• Directions/Map

Click here to register for meeting

Public Webinar:

•  When: Tuesday, March 1, 1 p.m. MST
• Where: Meeting website
• Phone Number: 888-390-1272. Passcode: 5747082

Click here to register for meeting

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @STGnews