Drakes Bay Oyster Company Special Use Permit Environmental Impact Statement Public Scoping Comments

Public scoping is the process by which the National Park Service (NPS) solicits public input on the scope of issues and alternatives to be addressed in a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) document, such as an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). It is a process open to the general public that is conducted early in the NEPA planning process. Public scoping can include meetings and mailings to educate the public on the project and on the planning process guiding the preparation of an EIS. It also instructs the public on how to provide their comments on the project. After the public scoping period ends, the NPS uses an established protocol to analyze and summarize the public comments received during the scoping period. This summary is used by the NPS—in addition to other relevant law, policy, planning documents, and scientific literature—to determine the scope of the EIS.

Point Reyes National Seashore held a public scoping period for the Drakes Bay Oyster Company Special Use Permit EIS from October 8, 2010 to November 26, 2010. During this time, three public scoping open house meetings were held at different locations in the vicinity of the park. The public was encouraged to submit comments through the NPS's Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) website. Comments were also accepted at the meetings, by postal mail, and in person at the park. Over 4,000 pieces of correspondence were received during the public scoping period for this EIS.

Public Comment Analysis Report

A Public Comment Analysis Report was produced describing the public scoping process for this document and presented the analysis and summary of public comments received. All 4,142 pieces of correspondence are included in the printed hardcopy Public Comment Analysis Report. Digital copies of the Public Comment Analysis Report are available upon request.

Please note that 435 pieces of correspondence entered into PEPC were left blank in the correspondence field. The NPS contacted individuals with blank correspondence fields by email, if an email address was provided, indicating their correspondence field was blank and provided instructions on how to correctly leave a comment. Additionally, home addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers were redacted from all pieces of correspondence with a gray box to protect personal privacy.

Comments recorded on flip charts during Public Scoping Meetings:

A total of 343 people attended the three meetings (206 people attended the meeting at the Dance Palace Community Center in Point Reyes Station on Tuesday, October 26, 2010; 73 attended the meeting at the Bay Model in Sausalito on Wednesday, October 27, 2010; and 64 attended the meeting at the Berkeley REI). Some people attended more than one meeting.

Attendees at the three public meetings were able to provide verbal comments. Flip charts were set up at each venue to record these comments. Each flip chart was entered into PEPC as a single piece of correspondence. There are five pieces of correspondence from the first public meeting in Point Reyes Station that correspond to each of the flip charts that were distributed through the room. Three pieces of correspondence were associated with the three flip charts provided at each of the second two meetings in Sausalito and Berkeley, respectively.

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