Park Planning Portfolios

The National Park Service (NPS) planning framework centers on the concept of the park planning portfolio. Every national park unit has its own planning portfolio, which consists of the planning documents that currently guide decision making and satisfy law and policy at the park. A park’s planning portfolio extends from its foundation document to site-specific implementation plans.

PEPC

Park planning documents are available on the National Park Service’s Planning, Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) site. This is also where you can find plans in development and open for comment, as well as an archive of draft and final plans. 

Common Possible Documents in a Park’s Planning Portfolio

The portfolio structure encourages the use of targeted planning products to meet a broad range of park planning needs. The exact contents of a planning portfolio vary for each park unit. The following common types of plans may be found in a park’s planning portfolio.

• Foundation documents describe the park’s purpose, significance, fundamental resources and values, primary interpretive themes, and special mandates.
• Comprehensive Plans, including General Management Plans (GMP), provide overall direction and guidance on a variety of issues and topics in one document. Comprehensive plans can be undertaken on a park-wide scale or can be focused on a distinct area or district of a park.
• Long-Range Interpretive Plans (LRIP) provide a vision for the future (5-10 years) of a park’s interpretation, education, and visitor experience opportunities.
• Fire Management Plans provide direction for wildland fire management inside the park.
• Transporation Plans assess and monitor transportation related issues, performance and maintenance for a park.
• Resource Stewardship Strategies are a long-range planning tool for achieving desired natural and cultural resource conditions.
• Cultural Landscape Reports guide park management and preservation treatment decisions for cultural landscapes and landscape features.

• Invasive Species Management Plans provide one or more parks with tools, techniques, and approaches to reduce the risk of invasive species introduction, establishment, and spread.

The makeup of park planning portfolios is as diverse as the over 420 parks that they help guide, with additional planning types pertinent to specific mandates and needs, such as Wild and Scenic River management plans, wilderness plans, partnership plans, and managed access plans.

Additional Resources