Yellowstone Net Newspaper

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YELLOWSTONE WEATHER Highs 40s, Lows 20s Snow Showers		Yellowstone Net Home Page Vacation Reservations	IN THE NEWS TODAY: Protecting Yellowstone -- by Bruce Gourley Yellowstone Coin to be Minted -- News Update Russ Finley Website Update -- News Brief Grizzly Update -- by Alliance for Wild Rockies NEW! Daily Environmental News -- from ISyndicate
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ROAD REPORT The West Roads Are Now Open! (Mammoth to Old Faithful & Canyon)		Note: The next edition of the Newspaper will be the Friday, April 30 edition PROTECTING YELLOWSTONE by Bruce Gourley Yellowstone is a national treasure which is owned by the American public. Protecting Yellowstone is the responsibility of the American public. This weekly feature will help identify and explore the issues which are crucial to the ongoing, healthy existence of the "Crown Jewel" of America's National Park system. YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK (YNET) -- Last week Yellowstone National Park managers released a list of winter-use alternatives which are the result of an ongoing winter-use assessment of Yellowstone. The "preferred alternative" in the list is to plow the road from West Yellowstone to Old Faithful during the winter months. The West Yellowstone to Old Faithful roadway is currently the favored snowmachine route in the Park during the winter months, and the west entrance and Old Faithful village have been the sites of the highest rates of snowmobile-produced pollution during the winter. The plowing of this stretch of roadway during the winter months would both reduce pollution levels and allow visitors to access Old Faithful with via automobile. There is certain to be a lot of discussion about this particular winter-use option, particularly since the community of West Yellowstone has, in recent decades, built it's winter economy around snowmobile rentals, many of which are taken into the Park. In recent months, steps have already been taken to reduce the high emission levels of snowmobiles in the Park, while the National Park Service considers mandating snowmobile-emissions level in national parks in the coming years. Currently, the only Yellowstone route open to winter automobile travelers is the northern portion of the Park. Plowing the West Yellowstone to Old Faithful route would give more visitors easier access to Old Faithful during the winter months. The rest of the Park's snowmobile routes would remain open to snowmachines, as well as the hundreds of miles of snowmobile trails just outside the Park near West Yellowstone. The potential financial impact upon the community of West Yellowstone, as well as the possible detrimental impact in regards to auto and wildlife mishaps on the narrow, snow-bound roadway, are the downside to opening the route to automobiles during the winter months. Yellowstone officials are continuing the difficult task of addressing Yellowstone's winter use-issues. The opening of the West Yellowstone to Old Faithful route to winter auto travelers is no certainty at this point, but there is little doubt that changes will come about in years ahead. BACK TO TOP
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS Ralph Maughan Kim Steinbacher Kevin Sanders Steve Brashear Clint Wilkes Tim Gourley Hon. Bob Gammage Ruth Colter-Frick Lee Whittlesey Tom Mazzarisi Russ Finley David Monteith Denise Elmer Dr. Bob Bara		YELLOWSTONE COIN TO BE MINTED News Brief The U.S. Mint has announced that it will issue a commerative silver dollar commemorating Yellowstone's 125th anniversary. Although Yellowstone celebrated its 125th anniversary in 1997, delays in the process of designing and printing the coin deterred the Mint from an earlier production date. The Yellowstone commemorative silver dollar will feature Old Faithful on the front and the seal of the Department of the Interior surrounding a bison on the back. The coin will be released on June 25 and is expected to have a selling price between $30 and $40. The price will include a $10 surcharge, of which $5 will go to Yellowstone and the other $5 to other national park units. The coin is expected to go on sale within the Park following its release. BACK TO TOP
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		RUSS FINLEY WEBSITE UPDATE News Brief Russ Finley, one of the nation's top national park photographers, has recently updated his internet site. Russ' site contains extensive photography of Yellowstone and other national parks. Russ' work has been featured in numerous magazines and television shows, and he has filmed a number of national park videos, the latest of which is Russ Finley's Winter in Yellowstone. To visit Russ Finley's website, and to see online video clips of his Winter in Yellowstone video, please go to www.yellowstone.net/russfinley. BACK TO TOP
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		GRIZZLY UPDATE by Alliance for Wild Rockies WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Four Republican U.S. Congressmen, including House Banking Committee Chairman Jim Leach, last week sent a letter to Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt opposing de-listing of grizzly bears in the Yellowstone ecosystem. Expressing concern about "a rush to judgment to hasten the de-listing process," they urged greater involvement of scientists in the private sector who have been critical of recovery efforts by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The letter was signed by Rep. Christopher Shays (R-Connecticut), Rep. Merrill Cook (R-Utah), Rep. Jim Leach (R-Iowa), and Rep. Tom Campbell (R-California). "We strongly agree with putting de-listing on hold while we obtain a thorough independent peer review by non-government scientists," said Mike Bader, executive director of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies. "There is too much doubt regarding the viability of the grizzly population in Yellowstone to proceed with de-listing. The population is isolated, and this island of habitat continues to shrink. Moreover, the timber, oil, and mining industries are eagerly waiting at the door to invade critical habitat as soon as the grizzly is de-listed." BACK TO TOP