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IN THE NEWS TODAY: Protecting Yellowstone -- by Bruce Gourley Yellowstone's Inadequate Budget -- by Bruce Gourley Yellowstone River News -- News Brief PWC Updates -- by National Park Service NEW! Daily Environmental News -- from ISyndicate |
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ROAD REPORT PUBLISHER EDITOR-IN-
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 PROTECTING YELLOWSTONEby 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) -- Two weeks ago the National Park Service announced that it is leaning towards banning all snowmobiles from Yellowstone National Park. Last week, opposition to the proposal began in earnest. The Park Service announced its preliminary conclusions following an Environmental Protection Agency report noting that the presence of snowmobiles in Yellowstone violated the Park Service's mandate of protecting Yellowstone's environment. Snowmobiles create very high levels of pollution, while the loud noise of the machines pierces the Yellowstone landscape nearly continuously during the winter season. Business leaders in Yellowstone's gateway communities and politicians throughout the tri-state area (Montana, Wyoming and Idaho) have announced their intentions to fight the possible ban all the way to court, if need be. All of a sudden, the bison and brucellosis controversy is beginning to look rather tame in comparison. What will happen between now and November, at which time the Park Service will announce its actual decision regarding snowmobile usage? At the least, lots of politics and rhetoric. Several million dollars in yearly tourism income is possibly at stake if snowmobiles are banned. Not unexpectedly, area business owners want to retain that portion of their income which is derived from Yellowstone snowmobiling. The alternatives (snowcoaching all tourists into Old Faithful) seem less than desirable in that many feel that snowcoaches are less desirable to tourists than snowmobiles. Whether snowmobiles are ultimately banned (the Park Service proposal would go into effect in 2002) or simply regulated, change is inevitable. In fact, it was a policy "change" that brought snowmobiling to Yellowstone in the first place nearly 30 years ago. Of course, change is never easy, especially when large sums of money are at stake. And yet the money itself may be the greatest irony in this ongoing controversy. The same politicians and business leaders who are concerned about local economies losing a few million yearly (a valid concern, certainly) tend to be completely unconcerned that Yellowstone itself has a $700 million maintenance backlog, which itself has resulted from two decades of congressional indifference at best (and congressional hostility at times). Money has long been in very short supply within Yellowstone, and now it may be in shorter supply in the gateway communities. (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
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YELLOWSTONE'S
INADEQUATE BUDGET YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK. Wyo. -- The world's best known and most loved national park is suffering from neglect. Some $700 million worth of neglect in the form of maintenance backlog, in fact. How could Yellowstone arrive at a point of having nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars worth of backlogged maintenance needs? In short, congress over the past several decades has not been supportive of America's national park system. Yellowstone's 2000 budget is a mere $30 million dollars, not even a drop in the bucket of what it should be, especially at a time when the American economy is flying at an all time high. The truth of the matter is, barring a miracle, Yellowstone National Park will never be allocated enough money for even basic needs. With the miniscule budget allocated to the Park, Yellowstone officials will be forced to spend three times more on repairs and upkeep this year than they will on wildlife and resource protection. And even then, the $700 million maintenance backlog will continue to grow larger. The ranger staff is undermanned and underpaid, campgrounds and trails are in poor shape, roads are in worse shape, and sewer systems in even worse shape. Yellowstone, the park that started out as the crown jewel of the world's national parks, has now become the pothole of America's national park system. Fortunately, however, the spirit of Yellowstone cannot be squelched. The American public is supportive of the national park system. If Congress does not soon began representing the people on this issue, the spirit of the America's national parks may be all that remains for future generations. |
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| YELLOWSTONE
RIVER NEWS News Brief The Yellowstone River Conservation District Council in Montana is seeking a state grant to assist in becoming a resource and clearinghouse of information to help in making river management decisions for the Yellowstone River. The river, which originates within Yellowstone National Park, flows north of the Park through central and eastern Montana before joining the Missouri River. The Yellowstone is the longest free-flowing river in America, running some 670 miles in length. Last year, American Rivers, a national conservation organization, named the Yellowstone River among the countries most endangered rivers because of bank stabilization projects. Several Montana environmental organizations have sued the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, stating that the Corps has illegally been issuing river projects without conducting the required impact studies. The Yellowstone River Council is made up of sixteen Montana country conservation districts. The Council proposes to use the grant money to conduct aerial assessments of the River, establish a resource and information center, and to establish a major national conference on the status of the Yellowstone River by 2003. The Council is seeking to find common ground among all interested parties in regards to management of the Yellowstone River. |
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WATERCRAFT LIMITED IN NATIONAL PARKS by National Park Service WASHINGTON, D.C. (NPS) -- National Park Service Director Robert Stanton has announced that a final rule for managing Personal Watercraft (PWC) use in areas of the National Park System goes into effect April 20, 2000. The rule was published in the Federal Register on March 21, 2000. "The National Park Service is charged with protecting this Nation's natural and cultural heritage while providing for the public's enjoyment of the places entrusted to our care," said Stanton. "Because of this mandate, we adopted a prudent approach to managing personal watercraft that allows their use, yet protects park values, sensitive natural areas, and plants and animals, and reduces conflicts with park visitors who seek solitude and traditional recreational activities such as canoeing and hiking." The final rule prohibits PWC use in national park areas unless the Service determines that this type of water-based recreational activity is appropriate for a specific park based on the legislation establishing that area, the park's resources and values, other visitor uses of the area, and overall management objectives. The rule also recognizes that PWC use may be appropriate in portions of certain areas such as Lake Mead (AZ/NV) and Glen Canyon (AZ/UT) National Recreation Areas (NRAs), where Congress directed the Service to manage an active motorized water-based recreation program on large man-made lakes. The rule allows two methods of authorizing PWC use. The first method, referred to as Park Designated PWC use, is available for a small group of National Park Service areas, where authorization might be appropriately and successfully accomplished through a Park Superintendent's Compendium, a locally based procedure for implementing restrictions. The second method, Special Regulation rulemaking through the Federal Register, is available for other park areas where authorization of PWC use may be deemed appropriate. The first, or locally-based, method may allow PWC use to continue in all or part of the following NPS units identified in the final rule: 10 NRAs, including Amistad (TX), Bighorn Canyon (MT), Chickasaw (OK), Curecanti (CO), Gateway (NY), Glen Canyon (AZ/UT), Lake Mead (AZ/NV), Lake Meredith (TX), Lake Roosevelt (WA), Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity (CA). A review of the legislation establishing these 10 Park Designated areas shows that water-related recreation was a primary purpose for these parks and that they are characterized by substantial motorized boating use. Nine of the park areas contain man-made lakes created by the construction of dams, and one park area has open ocean and bay waters. Superintendents will be able to regulate PWC use within these parks by area closures, public use limits, and other restrictions. The second method for authorizing PWC use in Park Service areas, Special Regulation rulemaking through the Federal Register, provides nationwide notice and opportunity to comment on any proposal to authorize PWC use in an area of the National Park System. The Service recognizes that this process can be time-consuming. Therefore, the rule establishes a 2-year "grace period" following final rule publication to provide certain listed park areas, where PWC use is presently occurring, sufficient time to develop and finalize special regulations as appropriate. During this 2-year grace period, the superintendents of the following park units would be able to authorize, manage and restrict (through zoning, hour limits, etc) PWC use: Assateague (MD/VA), Cape Cod (MA), Cape Lookout (NC), Cumberland Island (GA), Fire Island (NY), Gulf Islands (FL/MS), and Padre Island (TX) National Seashores; Indiana Dunes (IN) and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshores (MI); Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area (PA/NJ); and Big Thicket National Preserve (TX). The proposed rule was published in the Federal Register for public comment on September 15, 1998 (63 FR 49312) with the comment period lasting until November 16, 1998. The Service received more than 20,000 timely written responses during the comment period. PWC use has been controversial in many places throughout the country. The Service's concerns, coupled with an analysis of the comments received, led the agency to conclude that PWC use is inappropriate in most areas of the National Park System, and appropriate in only a small number of areas. Prior to release of the proposed rule, a dramatic increase in PWC use had been observed in 32 of the 87 units of the National Park System that allow motorized boating. PWC use is specifically prohibited at Yellowstone (WY, MT, ID) and Everglades (FL) National Parks; Buffalo National River (AR) and Ozark National Scenic Riverways (MO) through special regulations and other management restrictions issued prior to this rulemaking process. A number of areas closed to PWC use as a result of the current rulemaking process. These include: Biscayne (FL), Isle Royal (MI), Glacier (MT), Olympic (WA), Grand Canyon (AZ), Canyonlands (UT) National Parks; Canaveral (FL) and Cape Hatteras (NC) National Seashores; Golden Gate National Recreation Area (CA); Apostle Islands (WI) and Sleeping Bear Dunes (MI) National Lakeshores; and St. Croix National Scenic Riverway (WI/MN). PWCs are not motorboats. They are small vessels - usually less than 16 feet - which use an inboard motor powering a water jet pump as its primary source of power. They are operated by persons sitting, standing, or kneeling on the vessel. Designed for speed and maneuverability, they are commonly referred to as jet skis, waverunners, wavejammers, wetjets, sea-doos, wetbikes, and surf jets. |
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