Hatcher Pass Management Plan Revision

The Alaska Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Division of Mining, Land and Water (DMLW), has initiated a planning process to revise the Hatcher Pass Management Plan (management plan). The management plan will cover both the East and West sides of Hatcher Pass (Miles 8 to 37, Hatcher Pass Road), including Independence Mine State Historical Park, Summit Lake State Recreation Site, Bald Mountain Ridge, Government Peak, Mile 16 Ski Run, Archangel Creek, Reed Lakes, Little Susitna River, Craigie Creek, Lucky Shot and Willow Mountain areas. The revised plan may include additional areas of state land to reflect new use patterns.

The purpose of the Hatcher Pass Management Plan is to provide the basis for decision-making on the management of land and resources on state and borough lands within the plan boundary. It is used by DMLW and the Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation (DPOR) as the basis for overall area management and, by DPOR, in daily operational decisions. Borough land is also affected by the recommendations of the plan. DMLW and DPOR are working jointly to revise this management plan and will coordinate with the Borough throughout the plan revision process.

This management plan needs to be revised because it is outdated and no longer reflects the current use patterns and land ownership status. It has also been very difficult for either DMLW or DPOR to make management decisions and needs to be updated for the purpose of providing better guidance to both divisions as well. The original plan was finalized in 1986 and amended in 1989. A management plan is usually valid for a planning period of about 15 to 20 years. Plan revisions are usually undertaken by the DMLW at the end of this planning period or when conditions and initial planning assumptions have significantly changed. Both of these conditions exist within this management area.

Current and Previous Management Plans:

1986 Hatcher Pass Management Plan
1989 Hatcher Pass Management Plan Amendment

Initiation of Public Scoping:

DMLW has begun the public scoping phase for this project. During this phase, DNR will hold meetings with the public and interest groups to present background information on the management plan and its planning area and address current issues that affect management, access, and recreational use within the management area. Public involvement is essential to identify the current patterns of use and any conflicts that might result from such use, and to ensure that future actions present a shared vision for this area.

The public meetings for this project are scheduled for April 28th and 29th. After the public meetings are held, a 30 day comment period will be provided. Thereafter, DNR will develop a draft of the revised plan for public review, probably in September, and will conduct a number of public meetings to explain the draft plan findings and recommendations. A 45-day review period will be provided for public comments. Subsequently, DMLW will then review all public comments and revise the plan as appropriate.

Plan Revision Process:

To provide a better understanding of this process, the major steps in plan revision follow:

Note: It is also likely that changes to state regulations governing the Generally Allowed Uses on state land (11 AAC 96.014) will be necessary. If so, it is intended that changes to the current regulations affecting the plan area will occur concurrently with the plan revision process. A similar review process will be used.

Upcoming Public Meetings and Current Plan Status:

There are no public meetings scheduled at this time. Currently, the plan is under preparation and is scheduled to go through borough and state agency review, typically a 30-day process. Once we receive their final comments, we will revise the draft plan, if necessary, and then release it to the public in the form of a Public Review Draft (PRD).

When released, the PRD will represent the official position of the Department as to how we intend to manage the Hatcher Pass area. We anticipate that the PRD will be released electronically on our webpage in late November and the printed version should be available in December 2009. These dates are subject to change. Once the PRD is released, there will be a 60-day public comment period, during which time, additional public meetings for this plan will be scheduled.

Submittal of Comments:

The public is encouraged to submit comments to DNR at any time during the plan development process. We prefer that these comments be submitted in electronic form via the comment section on this page. This will permit individuals and groups to submit comments directly to the staff revising the plan.

Of course, email, fax, and written comments may also be submitted. If you would like to mail in your comment please use the mail in comment form available on this webpage.

Agency Contact:

Because of the types of issues that are likely to be addressed in the plan revision, staff contacts in DMLW and DPOR are to be provided.

For questions and comments regarding this management plan, and to submit comments via email, fax, or mail, contact:

For questions on recreation use patterns, enforcement, and related operational questions on day–to-day land management related to recreation, contact: