OZARKS MANAGEMENT PLAN MEETING SET

JEFFERSON CITY -- The Missouri Department of Conservation is seeking ideas on the Ozarks Management Plan, involving Ozark forest land.

A special meeting will be held Nov. 10 at Eminence to discuss the purchase of more than 126 square miles of land.

MDC seized a rare opportunity in December 1991 when it worked with The Nature Conservancy to purchase more than 126 square miles of land from the Kerr-McGee Corporation. It is the largest state land acquisition in decades, and encompasses large parts of the Current, Jack's Fork, and Eleven Point watersheds. It brings MDC's holdings in Shannon County to 135,000 acres.

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at Eminence High School. MDC officials will briefly explain the planning process and describe interim management. Most of the meeting will be dedicated to hearing individual and groups express their ideas and values for the area. Written comments will also be accepted. If there is enough interest, similar meetings may be scheduled in other locations early in 1993.

MDC Director Jerry Presley said the new holding, together with land already owned by MDC, the Forest Service and the National Park Service, creates unprecedented opportunities. Large blocks of land can be managed more efficiently and allow better ecosystem management than scattered parcels.

"This land is terribly important to the local environment and economy," said Presley. "It's also important to Missourians who live outside the Ozarks. It is rich in opportunities for recreation, research, sustainable resource use and conservation. That's why we want ideas from citizens and varied user groups at the very start of our planning process."

The meeting is the first step in MDC's five-year Ozark Heritage Conservation Project. That project will incorporate the Kerr- McGee purchase into, and update management plans for, all MDC land in the lower Ozarks.

According to Presley, the project seeks to ensure biological diversity, sustainable resource use, and public access at areas managed by MDC. It will work to inform and involve citizens, and encourage partnerships for integrated natural resource management and sustainable development in the region.

Ideas from the meeting will be conveyed to a regional planning team that includes specialists in forestry, fisheries, wildlife and natural history. The team's job is to develop management plans protecting diversity and ecosystems while meeting as many public needs as possible. It will also consider the results of surveys of the general public and users of MDC facilities.

"There is great diversity in Ozark plant and animal life," said Presley, who is a Shannon County native, "and I am excited to be a part of conserving for future generations. These holdings can protect and restore some very special things, and still provide diverse recreation for all Missourians and opportunity for sustainable local development. We want a 'win-win' scenario for the environment and the people who live in the Ozarks."