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Plans  »  Comprehensive Regional Planning Overview

The Division of Parks and Recreation's Regional Planning Program is responsible for developing a variety of plans for the NC State Parks System as well as the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. Brief descriptions of various plans are given below. The plans are avaialbe from the menu to the left.)

Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP)

The SCORP is an evaluation of the demand for and supply of outdoor recreation areas and facilities in the state. The plan contains an inventory of outdoor recreation areas and facilities by county. Development of the plan is a prerequisite for local and state governments to be eligible for matching assistance under the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) Act of 1965. Questions or comments may be directed to:

System-wide Plan for the NC State Parks System

The State Parks Act requires the preparation of a system-wide plan every five years, and directs that the plan:

• outlines a method whereby the mission and purpose of the state parks system can be achieved in a reasonable, timely and cost effective manner;


• evaluates existing parks to determine their statewide significance;


• identifies duplications and deficiencies in the current state parks system and makes recommendations for correction;


• describes the resources of the existing state parks system and their current uses, identifies conflicts created by those uses and propose solutions to them; and


• describes anticipated trends, details what impact those trends may have on the state parks system and recommends means and methods to accommodate those trends successfully.

Individual Park Plans (General Management Plans - GMPs)

While the system-wide plan guides the overall management and direction of the entire state parks system, the State Parks Act directs that general management plans be developed to guide individual parks. General management plans provide a thorough and logical approach to planning. Once developed, components of these individual park plans are combined and used in the system-wide plan.