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Local campground fees have increased
ROANOKE - George Washington and Jefferson National Forests officials announce fee increases for Hidden Valley and Blowing Springs family campgrounds in Bath County.
Beginning April 1, the fee for each campground will be $10 per campsite per night. The previous fee of $6 had been in effect since 1998.
The Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act, signed in 2004, allows the majority of money collected from public recreation fee sites to remain in those areas for operations, maintenance and enhancements. Planned improvements in these campgrounds include updating campsite pads with new stone dust, replacing worn picnic tables and grills and installing a new vault toilet building for Blowing Springs campground.
Public participation is a key component of the process to change recreation fees. Officials from the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests have solicited public comment on this fee change since August 2007 through notices in the campgrounds, local newspaper articles and on the forests' Web site.
The proposal for these fee increases, including analysis of the public comments, was reviewed by the Southern Region's Recreation Resource Advisory Committee comprised of citizens, private sector entrepreneurs and recreation advocates from non-profits. The group recommended approval and the regional forester approved the fee increase on Feb. 29.
For more information about these and other recreation fees in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests or about the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act, visit www.fs.fed.us/r8/gwj/recreation/ index.shtml or call 1-888-265- 0019.
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