Vol 4, # 11

   Monday, February 7, 2000

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YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK (YNET) -- Yellowstone National Park has many advocates on may fronts.  One of the programs which often leads individuals into a life-long appreciation and support of Yellowstone is the Yellowstone Youth Conservation Corps.  Some 30 students will be selected to work in the YCC this summer.   Following is an overview of the program, with instructions on how students can apply to spend this summer working in Yellowstone through the YCC.

The Yellowstone National Park Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) was established in 1984 as a joint effort between the National Park Service and Yellowstone National Park. The YCC was established to accomplish needed conservation work on public lands; provide gainful employment for young people from all social, economic, and ethnic classifications; and to develop an environmental understanding and appreciation of participating youth in our nation’s natural, historical, and cultural heritage. Private donations by the Loyal Order of the Moose provide funding for the program. The Yellowstone YCC program is one of only two residential YCC programs in the National Park Service (Yosemite has the other).

YCC is a work program, not a summer camp. Approximately 30 students are randomly selected each summer from North America, and participants are expected to complete forty hours of work each week. There are thirteen staff members, including the Camp Director, Work Coordinator, Cook, Logistics Assistant and 9 Crew leaders. The work takes place in a variety of weather and terrain conditions. In the past, YCC enrollees have been instrumental in building backcountry bridges; trail construction and maintenance; log cabin restoration; painting; and working on a wide variety of various resource management, maintenance, and research projects. Since many of the projects take place in remote locations within Yellowstone, crews may be camped out for up to 10 days. When a crew is camped out in the park for a work project, YCC provides all pertinent camping equipment. When crews are based out of your primary YCC camp in Mammoth, they stay in facilities that were built in 1978 specifically for youth programs. The dormitory and dinning hall are well equipped to help make the summer in Yellowstone as comfortable and enjoyable as possible.

Along with the work projects, enrollees spend significant time involved with the environmental and recreation opportunities Yellowstone has to offer. Much of these activities are done in the evenings and on weekends. Activities include hiking, rafting, fishing, backpacking, ranger led programs, guest speakers, enrollee and staff presentations, and tours of greater Yellowstone ecosystem resources and historical sites, and a variety of education and awareness games. Enrollees hike an average of 100 to 200 miles throughout the summer.

The YCC Program runs for 8 weeks and begins mid June. Enrollees receive minimum wage with deductions for room and board.

The YCC experience allows both youth and staff the opportunity to learn, grow, and work in the grandeur of Yellowstone. The program gives the youth values to carry throughout their lives to make a difference in the world.

You may download an application by clicking here.  If you are unable to download the online application or if you need additional information, please contact the YCC Program Manager at Yellowstone National Park headquarters by calling (307) 344-2148 or by writing the park, Attention: YCC Program, P.O. Box 168, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming 82190.

(Yellowstone Net provides you opportunity to voice your opinion regarding the various Yellowstone issues to your congresspersons and to editorial sections of magazines and newspapers by clicking here.)

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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
 

BISON UPDATE
News Brief

HELENA, Mont. -- State and federal officials announced Friday that they will try again to reach an agreement on a joint plan for managing diseased bison who wander out of Yellowstone National Park.

Yellowstone's bison, some of whom carry the disease brucellosis, have been in danger from the Montana Department of Livestock, which does not hesitate to kill diseased animals which leave the Park during the winter months.   The DOL claims the bison are a threat to the state's cattle industry, even though there is no shred of scientific evidence to support the claim that wild bison can transfer the disease, which can cause cattle to abort their fetuses, to domestic cattle.   Critics of the DOL have long pointed out that the agency simply has a dislike for bison, as attested to by the fact that the DOL pays no attention to the much-more numerous elk herds in Yellowstone and Montana which carry the same disease and which are actually capable of transferring the disease to domestic cattle.

The DOL's hard-line stance against the bison led the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to cut off talks with the DOL last year.  The three federal agencies and the Montana DOL on Friday, however, decided to again try to reach a mutual solution through the services of a mediator.

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GLACIER NATIONAL PARK, Mont. -- Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt has appointed 17 people to an advisory committee on rebuilding the Going to the Sun Road in Glacier National Park.   The panel will hold its first meeting the week of February 28.  The Committee, formed at the instruction of Congress in response to area businesses complaining of the potential loss of revenue from the closing of the famous road, includes representatives of state and local governments, Indian tribes, area businesses, environmental groups, tourism agencies, engineering experts, and economists.  Engineers estimate that the Going to the Sun Road needs up to $100 million worth of rehabilitation.

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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared last week that the black-tailed prairie dog deserves protection under the Endangered Species Act, but is not endangered to the degree that some other animals and plants are endangered.  The prairie dog will be added to the list of candidates for threatened status and its status will be reviewed annually.   At this point, the designation does not offer protection for the small plains animal, but paves the way for possible future action.

This action came as a result of a 1998 National Wildlife Federation petition to list the black-tailed prairie dog as a endangered species.   Once roaming throughout much of the American West and Mid-West, the black-tailed prairie dog has been reduced to a tiny fraction of its numbers over a miniscule portion of its historic range.  Environmental groups are pleased with the action of the Fish and Wildlife Service.

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