Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests Plan Revision

The Nantahala and Pisgah forest plan is being revised to handle the challenges of managing our complex ecosystems to meet the needs of all users for the next 15 years. The draft plan has been developed in coordination with tribal, state, and county governments and significant collaboration with the public. The draft plan and draft EIS were available for public comment from February 14 to June 29, 2020. 

Welcome to our Virtual Open House

Visit each station below to understand the proposed forest plan, how your interests are represented, and next steps. 

Station 1: Getting started

• If you just want a quick overview, watch this 2-minute video featuring Planning Team Leader Michelle Aldridge.

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  The Reader’s Guide provides an orientation and brief synopsis of issues

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  Places Matter Story Map - Interactive maps (ArcGIS online) of the Geographic Areas demonstrating connections with people, healthy ecosystems, clean and abundant water, and partnerships. (Works best in Chrome browser.)

• If you're new to forest planning and want general information on forest management plans and the plan revision process go to the Forest Planning Overview page. 

• Letter from Forest Supervisor Allen Nicholas

• An overview for counties

Station 2: Digging into the Proposed Plan

• In-depth webinar overview of the Proposed Forest Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement

• Interactive maps are included in the ArcGIS online story maps which describe management areas and four alternatives for how the forest plan could be applied. These maps work best using Chrome Browser.

• Click here for infographic representations of plan objectives to learn more about some of the things that the plan will achieve.

• Proposed Forest Plan

  • Plan Appendix B: Timber Calculations 

  • Plan Appendix A: Consolidated Objectives

Station 3: Exploring the influence of management

The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is the environmental analysis of how the proposed forest plan would affect natural and cultural resources on the Nantahala and Pisgah NFs. This document also provides information on the issues that have been raised through public involvement and how different alternatives were developed in response to issues.

• Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) (Updated title page June 2, 2020)

  • DEIS Appendix A: Response to Comments (completed after the comment period)

  • DEIS Appendix B: Description of the Analysis Process

  • DEIS Appendix C: Ecological Sustainability Analysis

  • DEIS Appendix C: Ecological Sustainability Analysis (updated 3/31/2020)

  • DEIS Appendix D: Vegetation Management Methods

  • DEIS Appendix E:Wilderness Evaluation Process

  • DEIS Appendix F: Wild and Scenic River Evaluation Process

  • DEIS Appendix G: Coordination with Other Public Planning Efforts

  • DEIS Appendix H: Public and Government Involvement

• Maps

  • PDF format 

  • Guide to Web-based interactive maps

  • Geospatial datasets used in EIS analysis

Station 4: Exploring unique topics

General Questions and Answers (Last Updated 5/20/2020)

A sample of questions and answers about the proposed plan and draft EIS. More Q&As will be added as the comment period unfolds.

Vegetation Patterns and Species Analysis

• Process for Establishing the Natural Range of Variation
  • Attachment A - Probability NRV Models
• Old Growth: Techinical Webinar*
• Timber Calculations: Technical Webinar* Questions and Answers
• Timber Mythbuster
• Identification of Canopy Gap and Early Successional Habitat Patches
• Spectrum Analysis - Young Gaps
• Wildlife and Plant Species Analysis: Technical Webinar* Questions and Answers
• Fire Analysis: Technical Webinar* Questions and Answers

Designated Areas and Recreation

• Wilderness and Wild and Scenic Rivers: Technical Webinar* Questions and Answers
• Wilderness Mythbuster
• Special Interest Areas and NC Natural Heritage Areas: Technical Webinar* Questions and Answers
• Recreation and Access: Technical Webinar* Questions and Answers

*Technical Webinars

The National Forest Foundation, a Congressionally recognized  non-profit partner of the Forest Service, is facilitating a collaborative group, the Stakeholders Forum for the Nantahala and Pisgah Forest Plan Revision, to bring diverse interests to a collaborative table. The Forum hosted deep dive webinars that provide a more technical review of the analysis within the EIS.​

Station 5: Comment Consideration and Next Steps

The formal 90-day comment period was initiated on February 14, 2020, extended for an additional 45 days, and concluded on June 29, 2020. 

All comments that were submitted using the online comment analysis and response application (CARA) are publicly available through the online comment reading room. 

Over the next several months, the plan revision team will be reading and responding to public comments. We will use what we have learned through the comments, public meetings, and discussions with county, state, and tribal officials to decide what changes to make to the proposed plan and EIS.

After making updates to the documents, we will release the final proposed plan and final EIS and begin a five-month objection period. Individuals that have provided comments during the comment period have standing to object to the proposed plan and EIS. Objections will be received by and reviewed by the Regional Forester in Atlanta. Objection resolution may lead to additional changes in the documents before the plan is finalized. Click here for more information on the objections process.

We estimate that the final plan and Record of Decision will be released in late 2021.

Please note that all comments, names, and addresses are part of the public record and subject to Freedom of Information Act requests.

• Federal Register Notice of Availability (NOA) Feb 14, 2020
• Legal Notice Feb 14, 2020
• Federal Register Notice for comment period extension May 8, 2020
• Legal Notice May 8, 2020 

While public engagement on the forest plan revision process has concluded for the summer, there continue to be opportunities for the public to engage in project planning through the NEPA process for individual projects. More information about projects that are under development or in progress can be found at the Forests' project page.

Contact Us

If you are having difficulty viewing the documents or have questions about where to find more information, please call us at 828-257-4200.

Plan Revision Team, National Forests in North Carolina, 160 Zillicoa St, Asheville NC 28801