Pacific NW Trail advisory group meeting this week
TRAILS --The citizen council that advises the Forest Service on the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail will meet Wednesday and Thursday, May 4-5 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Northwest Maritime Center in Port Townsend, Washington.
The PNWT runs 1,200 miles from the Continental Divide in Glacier National Park to the Pacific Ocean at Cape Alava in Olympic National Park. The trail -- which follows trails, roads and conceptual routes -- travels through seven National Forests, three National Parks, tribal, state, and private lands in Montana, Idaho, and Washington.
The council will discuss and make recommendations to the Forest Service on the long-term management of the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail, including trail uses, route location, signage, and opportunities for youth. The council is composed of 24 citizens appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to represent a balance of interests from across the trail. It also includes representatives of federal and state land management agencies.
All meetings of the council are open to the public. The agenda includes time each day for testimony from the public. Written testimony may also be submitted in advance of the meeting by email to pnnstcomments@fs.fed.us.
In 2009, Congress designated the Pacific Northwest Trail as the newest of America’s 11 National Scenic Trails. The Forest Service is responsible for preparing a comprehensive plan for long-term management of the trail. The agency plans to hold a series of public scoping meetings on the comprehensive plan in spring 2017.
