Posted
Wednesday - September 27, 2000
THIS JUST IN...
Friday September 29 2000 4:12 PM ET
U.S. Budget
Negotiators Approve Public Lands Boost
By Vicki Allen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congressional and White House
negotiators agreed to provide $12 billion over six years to
expand national parks, protect environmentally-sensitive areas
and maintain and improve parks and historic sites in a deal
completed on Friday.
Part of the fiscal
2001 federal budget that the Republican-led Congress and
President Clinton are negotiating, the bill requires final
approval from both the House and Senate before being sent to
the White House, which embraced it.
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Senate
Approves Everglades Restoration Project
Zion
National Park Rediscovers A Surprising Asset
U.S.
Expands Protection Of Big Sur
Snow
In Yellowstone - Fire Season Officially Over
Two Buck
Mule Deer Poached in Grand Teton - Public Asked for Help
with Leads
Landmark
U.S. Parks Bill Races The Clock
Silence
Getting Scarce At National Parks
Glacier
National Park to Rehab Treatment Plant
Yosemite's
Bear Aware Program Saves Bears and Cars
Elk
Herds Set To Be Reintroduced Into Smokies
INDEX
OF PAST ISSUES
Monday,
September 25, 2000
Senate
Approves Everglades Restoration Project
WASHINGTON
(AP) -- The Senate gave overwhelming approval Monday to what
lawmakers called the largest environmental restoration
project in history -- a $7.8 billion effort expected to take
three decades to rescue the Florida Everglades.
The
legislation, which must still be taken up by the House,
calls for a massive federal construction project to restore
the historic water flows through the 300-mile long
Everglades ecosystem.
Despite
bipartisan support in Congress and the White House's
backing, the measure could still encounter problems in the
House with adjournment fast approaching. Supporters are
hoping to speed it to the floor in the next two weeks.
If passed,
the Everglades rescue is likely to be the only major
environmental bill to clear the 106th Congress.
The
Everglades project was included in legislation that also
authorized two dozen various flood control, waterway
navigation and environmental restoration project by the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers, which also will be in charge of the
Everglades restoration.
The bill
passed 85-1.
Environmentalists
for years have pushed for a comprehensive, long-term program
to repair the damage caused by decades of flood-control
efforts that disrupted the Everglades' natural water flow.
An estimated half of the ecosystem already has disappeared.
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THE STORY ON CNN.COM
Monday,
September 25, 2000
Zion
National Park Rediscovers A Surprising Asset
by Lin Alder - High Country
News, Utah
SPRINGDALE, Utah - Though some still question the wisdom of
spending $11.8 million on 350 shuttle buses for Zion
National Park (HCN, 4/10/00), practically everyone agrees
that they allow an unexpected experience to emerge from the
surreal canyons of Utah.
Quiet strikes tourists when they step off a propane-powered
bus at any of the seven stops along the six-mile Zion Scenic
Drive in Zion Canyon. Sounds that emerge are likely to be
the scream of a raven or the murmur of the Virgin River.
Fewer cars mean fewer car alarms, fewer scenes of bloody
roadkill or angry drivers looking for a parking spot in the
searing summer heat.
For most people, the shuttle system, which includes a loop
in Springdale, Utah, at the park's southern entrance, is a
step in the right direction for an overcrowded "crown
jewel" of the National Park System.
"After their first shuttle ride, I've had people who've
been coming to Zion for years say that they feel like
they've never been to Zion before," says Shirley
Ballard, co-owner of the Driftwood Lodge here. "There's
no buses idling in a cloud of diesel fumes and no RVs with
generators. It's amazing."
The shuttle is mandatory between April 1 and Oct. 31 for
visitors who wish to follow Zion Scenic Drive, unless they
have room reservations in the park at the Zion Lodge.
Visitors are still free to drive their own cars on State
Route 9 through the Zion Tunnel to the park's East Entrance.
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Sunday,
September 24, 2000
U.S.
Expands Protection Of Big Sur - $4.5 Million For Endangered
Wildlife Habitat
LOS ANGELES,
California -- The White House said on Sunday that 784 acres of
forest, meadow and rugged cliffs on the southern edge of Big
Sur in central California have been purchased for $4.5 million
as part of President Clinton's drive to conserve areas of
natural beauty.
The U.S. Forest
Service bought the parcel around San Carpoforo Creek. It will
be added to the 1.75-million-acre Los Padres National Forest.
The acquisition
of the former ranchland protects a habitat for the endangered
steelhead trout and the Smith's blue butterfly. It also
ensures protection of a rare public access to the Big Sur
coastline.
The acquisition
is tiny compared with the acreage already under federal
protection around Big Sur, but it carries significant symbolic
value.
The purchase
represents one of Clinton's last chances to expand his
environmental legacy and an opportunity to confer further
environmental and conservation credentials on Vice President
Al Gore.
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THE STORY ON CNN.COM
Monday,
September 25, 2000
Snow
In Yellowstone - Fire Season Officially Over
Yellowstone
National Park (Yellowstone Net News) -- The Yellowstone
National Park region, as well as the states of Montana and
Wyoming, experienced a snowstorm this past weekend which led
to a number of record lows and dumped well over a foot of snow
in some places. As a result, the Interagency Fire Center based
in Boise, Idaho has declared the 2000 fire season to be
officially over.
The snowstorm of
this past weekend also signals the end of summer in the
Yellowstone region. The Tower to Canyon road via Dunraven Pass
is scheduled to close on October 10, as is the Beartooth Pass
leading to the Park's Northeast entrance. All other roads in
the Park, with the exception of the North entrance to Cooke
City segment, are scheduled to close on November 6. However,
temporary road closures due to winter weather may occur at any
time.
Friday,
September 22, 2000
Two
Buck Mule Deer Poached in Grand Teton - Public Asked for
Help with Leads
Two
large adult mule deer bucks, were killed on Monday evening,
September 18, at approximately 8:30 pm, south of Ditch
Creek, just east of the Kelly Road, in Grand Teton National
Park. The deer were discovered on Tuesday morning, September
19, by park rangers, apparently killed solely for their
trophy size antlers.
One
buck was found dead, having been shot and his antlers had
been removed. The other deer was found dead, and had also
been shot. However, the second deer's antlers were intact,
possibly because someone unknowingly passed near by the
scene of the poaching, causing the poachers to flee.
Grand
Teton National Park's, Chief Ranger, Colin Campbell, urges
anyone with information to contact the park at (307)
739-3327. Through "Park Watch" and "Jackson
Hole Crimestoppers", a reward of up to $5000.00 is
being offered for information leading to the arrest and
conviction of the person/s involved. The phone number for
"Jackson Hole Crimestoppers" is (307)
733-5148.
The
killing of wildlife in national parks is a federal offense
and can be prosecuted as a felony under the Lacey Act which
carries heavy penalties including imprisonment, fines,
seizure of equipment and restitution for damage to or loss
of property and resources.
According
to Park Superintendent Jack Neckels, "this is one of
the most appalling kinds of crimes, killing beautiful and
gentle animals in cold blood, simply for a wall
trophy." Neckels added, "thousands of visitors who
have delighted in seeing these animals in the park, over the
last few years, are now robbed of that great pleasure and
discovery. The gene pool for the park's mule deer
population has also been diminished." Anyone who may
have been on the Kelly Road in the vicinity of Ditch Creek
or the Teton Science School last Monday evening, September
18, is asked to call the park with any information, which
might be helpful to this investigation. Report any
information to (307) 739-3327 or (307) 733-5148.
Wednesday
September 20, 2000
Landmark
U.S. Parks Bill Races The Clock
By Paul Rogers, Mercury News
With less than three weeks before Congress is set to
adjourn, time is running out for a landmark conservation
bill that would more than triple federal spending to expand
America's national parks, restore wildlife, build inner-city
basketball courts and preserve historic sites and
battlefields.
On Tuesday,
scrambling supporters released a letter signed by 63
senators backing the bill. But a filibuster threat by a
handful of western Republican senators could keep the
measure from reaching the floor for a vote this year.
The bill, known
as the Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA), picked up
momentum this year following polls showing that suburban
voters from Silicon Valley to Atlanta are increasingly
concerned about traffic, sprawl and other ``quality of
life'' issues.
Unprecedented
in breadth, the bill would create a huge new piggy bank for
America's parks, shifting $3 billion a year in offshore oil
drilling royalties to land conservation and recreation over
the next 15 years. Currently, most offshore royalties go to
the U.S. Treasury.
READ
THE FULL STORY AT THE SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
Tuesday,
September, 19, 2000
Silence
Getting Scarce At National Parks
By
Traci Watson, USA TODAY
BRYCE CANYON
NATIONAL PARK, Utah - The rock towers called Silent City
can't be reached by trail, and they aren't on the visitors'
map of this remote desert park. To get there, a hiker must
veer into a dry streambed and labor uphill, gasping in the
thin air 7,500 feet above sea level.
But for Gordon
Hempton, America's foremost guru of quiet and a connoisseur
of natural sounds, a place called Silent City is
irresistible. So he scrambles up the slope, his $1,500 sound
meter in hand.
He soon
returns: Silent City failed miserably to live up to its
name. "There was continuous (aircraft) noise,"
Hempton reports. "One helicopter was 48 (decibels), the
other was at 42, and the jet was at 41. Those figures seem
low, but they're the loudest thing going."
Americans visit
the national parks expecting tranquility, a little respite
from the hurly-burly of everyday suburban life. But unless
they're among the few who venture into the backcountry, they
don't always find the peace and quiet they seek. Even at
isolated parks, the sounds of civilization - the
internal-combustion engine, the car alarm, the jackhammer
- intrude on the visitor's ear. Too often lost in the
hubbub are the wind in the trees and the singing birds.
Even the
National Park Service agrees that parks are often easy on
the eye but hard on the ear. Park Service officials are so
concerned that this fall they're expected to ask all park
superintendents to find ways to protect what's known as the
soundscape, the blend of natural sounds unique to every
park. During the last year, the Park Service has banned or
restricted motorized playthings such as snowmobiles and
personal watercraft, partly because of the noise they make.
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September
2000
Glacier
National Park to Rehab Treatment Plant
(Montana)
-- Glacier National Park announced that it has plans to
begin rehabilitating the wastewater treatment system for
Lake McDonald'/Park Headquarters.
The
final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that details
plans to construct an advanced wastewater treatment plant
was recently released to the public. The intent of the
rehabilitation is to provide the park with an advanced
system that will minimize impacts to the environment and
last for at least the next 20 years.
The
current plant was built in the 1970s and no longer meets the
demands placed on it. The final EIS evaluated the
consequences on wildlife, vegetation, threatened and
endangered species, water quality and park concessions
operations. The EIS was publicly reviewed and commented on
from January 31, 2000 to March 31, 2000.
Copies
of the Final EIS are available on the Internet at www.nps.gov/glac,
or from the Superintendent, Glacier National Park, West
Glacier, Montana 59936. For more information regarding the
EIS, contact Amy Vanderbilt (406) 888-7906 at Glacier
National Park.
September
2000
Yosemite's
Bear Aware Program Saves Bears and Cars
(California)
-- Yosemite National Park has declared a victory. A
comprehensive public awareness campaign to return bears to
the wild has proven to be a success. The result was a
dramatic decrease in bear-related property damage.
Vehicle
break-ins by bears have decreased as much as 40% this year.
Although property damage is down, the number of bear related
incidents remains similar to past years. In affect, bears
have changed the areas they are active in. It seems they are
now more active in campgrounds. The park reports that 379
incidents occurred through mid-August of this year compared
to 406 incidents for the same time last year.
Removal
of non-native food sources such as apples from the Lamon's
and Curry Village Orchards in Yosemite Valley have caused
bears to seek food sources more native to their diet. The
availability of the apples had attracted bears to the area
and altered their natural diets. Removal of non-native
apples in the orchards is now an annual event participated
in by visitors and park employees.
For
further information regarding the Yosemite bear programs,
contact Scott Gediman at Yosemite National Park (209)
372-0248.
Friday
August 11, 2000
Elk
Herds Set To Be Reintroduced Into Smokies National Park
Plan is intended to restore the Great Smoky Mountains to its
setting before humans encroached.
By Lois Reagan Thomas - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Gatlinburg, Tenn. --- After a 150-year absence, elk may soon
again roam the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
The first of an experimental herd of 75 to 90 radio-collared
elk are to be released into the park next spring and evaluated
for five years before a decision is made on whether to fully
reintroduce the animals to the area, said Kim DeLozier, park
biologist.
Park managers just ended a public comment period on the plan,
and the response was "overwhelmingly positive," said
DeLozier.
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