|
||||
| MONDAY July 31, 2000 Vol 4, # 46 |
|
|
||||
| MONDAY July 31, 2000 Vol 4, # 46 |
|
|
. | |
| Site Search | Support Yellowstone! Discussion Free Internet, Email, More Email Newsletter | |
YELLOWSTONE ROAD
REPORT PUBLISHER EDITOR-IN-
|
 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) -- Twelve years ago today, the great fires of 1988 were well underway in Yellowstone. Fifty separate fires burned in Yellowstone during the hot summer months that year, while some 248 total fires burned throughout the larger Yellowstone ecosystem. Of the fires within the Park, seven major fires were responsible for about 95% of the destruction. The destruction from the fires affected one-third of Yellowstone National Park. Within the Park, 25,000 firefighters battled the blazes at a cost of some $120 million. Dozens of buildings were destroyed, and some wildlife were killed (mostly elk, of which about 350 died). Despite the human manpower expended to control the fires, it took the help of early autumn snows to finally slow down the enormous fires. Even then, the last embers were not extinguished until November. In the months and years following the great fires of 1988, politicians, Park Service officials and local residents extensively debated the pros and cons of Yellowstone's (and, by extension, the National Park Service's) fire management plan. Many felt Park Service officials should have been quicker to put out the fires early on. In fact, officials tried to extinguish the human-controlled fires from the very beginning. Many of the fires, however, had been caused by lightning which set the dry landscape ablaze. Park policy had been to let naturally-occurring fires take place, under certain conditions, as a part of the natural regulation of Yellowstone's ecosystem. Those "conditions" were carefully scrutinized following the fires, and eventually were more narrowly defined. In defense of Park Service officials, however, no one could have anticipated how monstrous the fire season of 1988 would turn out to be. Indeed, the fire suppression policies of previous years contributed to the large amount of dry wood fuel that the fires of 1988 fed upon. Yellowstone is indeed a complex ecosystem, as the fires taught once again. Then, to top off all the criticism, the Park's landscape made a very quick comeback in the few years following the fires as unprecedented numbers of wildflowers appeared on the scene and thousands of lodgepole pine seedlings emerged from the blackened earth. Today, the Park's recovery is very evident. As visitors gazes over numerous patches of four-six foot lodgepole pine trees, they are seeing nature at work. The fires of 1988 served as a lesson in both the dangers and benefits of fire in Yellowstone's ecosystem. These lessons may be put to the test one day in the future, perhaps during a long, hot, dry summer season much like this very summer in the Wyoming and Montana area. Currently, dozens of fires are raging across Montana, and there appears to be no relief in sight. In the midst of this hot, dry season, Park visitors should be aware that fire is a very real danger in Yellowstone, and that all fire regulations should be strictly followed. (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.) |
|
| . | . | . |
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS Ralph Maughan |
CLEANING UP
SODA BUTTE CREEK COOKE CITY, Mont. -- The Beartooth Alliance, an environmental group, has launched a campaign to clean up a stretch of Soda Butte Creek northeast of Yellowstone which is severely polluted from previous mining operations near Cooke City, Montana. Just above Cooke City, the creek is a sickly orange. Nothing, not even insects, lives in the creek. The toxic pollution which taints the creek comes from the McLaren tailings, a huge pile of ore and waste rock whose cleanup was ultimately dropped from the Crown Butte Mine agreement. Now the Beartooth Alliance is stepping in and trying to raise the support necessary to cleanup the tailings, noting that a heavy spring runoff or an earthquake could easily dislodge the 300,000 cubic yards of toxic tailings and send it downward into Yellowstone National Park. |
|
| , | . | . |
| SNOWMOBILING UPDATE News Brief Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt has re-iterated that a National Park Service proposal to ban snowmobiles in national parks is yet just a proposal. According to Babbitt, a decision will not be likely until late fall or early winter. At this point, a draft rule has not been completed and a public comment period has not been instigated. Additionally, Babbitt indicated that alternatives will be considered. The National Park Service has received both favorable and unfavorable feedback from various environmental and special interest groups regarding the proposed snowmobile ban. Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks are not included in the proposal, as studies are still underway to ascertain more fully the effects of snow machines upon the Yellowstone ecosystem. Even so, many expect that snowmobiles, which emit much more pollution and noise than automobiles, will indeed eventually be banned from America's national parks, including Yellowstone and Grand Teton. |
||
| w | . | . |
 PEOPLE AND PLACESby Clint Wilkes On occasion Clint Wilkes will offer a story of interest to everyone who loves Yellowstone and the surrounding area. Some stories will be humorous, others will illustrate a point. You the reader are invited to respond by email. BELGRADE, Mont. (YNET) -- An annual gathering of fly fisherman is being held this week in Livingston, Montana. This is the equivalent of one of the National Political Parties conventions being held in Philadelphia and Los Angeles this summer. The only real difference is that more lies will be told in L.A. and Pennsylvania than in Montana this summer. If you think about it, that's kind of rare when you compare yourself with fisherman! As far as I know not one fisherman in the world has ever caught a SMALL fish. Many of those going to Livingston are going to be heading over to Doc Knoll's Fly Shop for some expert advice and some of the most incredible flies you have ever seen. Doc raises his own Hackles and makes the best flies in the world. If you are going to be in Livingston, give Doc a call and go by his Fly Shop. It's on the east side of the Yellowstone River just a short drive from Livingston South on Highway 89. You may even want to take a look at Amy's Huckleberry gift line. (Only a grizzly bear loves huckleberries more than me!) Doc's is a local call from Livingston. Just phone 333-4848. |
||
| |
||
