The district ranger for Big Brushy Campground -- which has been off-limits to the public since last May -- said Wednesday that he is recommending that the recreation area be reopened to daytime visitors.
"We initially proposed to close Big Brushy," Mena-Oden District Ranger Tim Oosterhous said. "But after giving careful thought to comments from the public and our partners, I've decided to keep the campground open for day use."
Big Brushy Campground is on U.S. 270 about 15 miles west of Mount Ida and sits next to Big Brushy Creek.
Camping has been prohibited at Big Brushy since the summer of 2012, when Ouachita National Forest managers began to worry about the potential for deadly flooding.
A flood elevation survey confirmed that all of Big Brushy Campground lies below the 100-year flood elevation and that a majority of the area lies below the 50-year flood elevation. There is a one-in-100 chance -- or 1 percent chance -- that a 100-year flood will occur during any given year. And there is a 2 percent chance that a 50-year flood could happen during any given year.
On May 31, significant a flash flood swept through the campground, damaging tent pads, grills, playground equipment, parking spurs and roads. No visitors were present at the time.
After the flood, officials decided to close the campground to day-use visitors, as well.
Based on the flood and the elevation survey, the U.S. Forest Service initially proposed decommissioning Big Brushy. This would have entailed removing all improvements to the area and closing it for good.
But after getting the results of a second study -- which focused solely on whether it would be best to decommission Big Brushy Campground or to limit it to daytime use only -- Oosterhous reconsidered his options.
"Safety is our No. 1 concern here, so we really only had two choices," he explained in a news release."We could close the recreation area completely, remove everything and let it return to general forest area, or we could open the area to the public during daylight hours, when people are awake and more aware of their surroundings. We've opted for the latter, knowing how much this area means to the public and the local community."
Three of the nine camping sites located nearest to the water will be decommissioned under this plan.
Oosterhous' recommendation to make the area day-use only is subject to objection from those who already have submitted comments and opinions on the matter to the U.S. Forest Service. Objections will be accepted for the next 45 days.
Big Brushy Campground was first developed by the U.S. Forest Service in 1962. Subsequent additions over the years have included playground equipment, bathrooms and a picnic pavilion.
Other improvements included nine campsites, which offered tent pads, picnic tables, grills, fire rings and lantern posts; an information board, volleyball net and trash receptacles.
State Desk on 05/15/2014