National Parks News - Feb 08

Acadia National Park:

"House approves Acadia National Park legislation"
By The Associated Press
Article Date: Wednesday, February 13, 2008

The U.S. House has approved a bill that would set the stage for improvements to Maine's Acadia National Park.
http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080213/NEWS0104/259330732

"Trenton, MDOT Iron Out Acadia Gateway Welcome Center Issues"

TRENTON — At a private meeting closed to the public, town officials, Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT) managers and elected representatives came together last week to iron out several issues regarding the proposed Acadia Gateway Welcome Center.
http://ellsworthmaine.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13087&Itemid=31

Canyonlands National Park:

"An ever-dustier Western US"

There is an interesting article in the current Nature Geoscience that looks at the effect human civilization has had on dust, of all things. No, I'm not talking about Philip Pullman novels, nor accumulated skin cells, but eolian dust, generated from a number of processes including industry, wind erosion, land cultivation and so on.
http://arstechnica.com/journals/science.ars/2008/02/25/an-ever-dustier-western-us

Death Valley National Park:

"Hot, Arid Death Valley Nothing Like Imagined"

DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK -- Funny how certain music, images or words can trigger memories made while sitting in front of the television set as a kid.
http://www.modbee.com/life/travel/story/214042.html

"Wildflowers About to Put on a Show"
This year’s wildflower blooms are expected to be markedly better than last year’s thanks to a healthy dose of winter rain.
http://www.bakersfield.com/102/story/376387.html

Glacier National Park:

"Pollution Fouling Glacier National Park"
A new report confirms what scientists have suspected for several years, that our wilderness lakes are contaminated with a variety of pollutants, including mercury and pesticides.
http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=7945932

"BP Still Mulling Coal-bed Extraction"
By MICHAEL JAMISON of the Missoulian
KALISPELL - Canadian politicians and industry remain keenly interested in coal-bed methane reserves north of Glacier National Park, despite an announcement last week that such plans were off the table.
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/02/28/news/local/news03.txt

Grand Canyon National Park:

"Lees Ferry: Wild and Remote, Full of Recreational Options"
The solitude of the historic river crossing on the Colorado Plateau makes the spot a major draw that both unnerves and exhilarates…
By Tom Wharton
http://www.sltrib.com/food/ci_8383576

"Canyon Needs Shot of Funding"
The breathtaking beauty of Grand Canyon National Park astonishes visitors. So does the ugly reality of traffic jams and parking battles.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/opinions/articles/0219tue2-19.html

"Mining near Grand Canyon a Radioactive Idea"
Our view: Antiquated 1872 law puts our state treasure and other parks at risk.

There is no place more sacred to Arizonans than the Grand Canyon. However, it is at risk.

A British mining company is about to begin exploratory drilling for toxic, radioactive uranium in Kaibab National Forest just outside the eco-fragile boundaries of Grand Canyon National Park.
http://www.azstarnet.com/business/226080

Grand Teton National Park:

"Yellowstone, Grand Teton National Parks Recruiting Youths"
The Salt Lake Tribune
Yellowstone National Park is seeking applicants for its Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) program, an eight-week residential work program for teens ages 15-18 designed to develop an appreciation for the nation's natural surroundings and heritage.

http://www.sltrib.com/outdoors/ci_8316783

"Panel Hears Plea for Protection"
By NOELLE STRAUB
Star-Tribune Washington bureau
WASHINGTON -- Bush administration officials on Wednesday gave nominal support to a bill that would put 1.2 million acres of the Wyoming Range off limits to new energy development, but Gov. Dave Freudenthal criticized them for putting up roadblocks to the measure.
http://www.casperstartribune.net/article...3fd00050c48.txt

"When Grizzlies Ruin Eden, Moose Take to the Road"
Joel Berger, 56, is a specialist in ungulates, hoofed mammals that, in general, walk on the tips of their toes to sustain their body weight. His investigations into the behavior and habits of rhinoceros, bison, pronghorn sheep and moose have been used to find ways to preserve them and their environments.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/12/science/12conv.html?ref=science


"Preserving the Pronghorn Corridor"
B-T could amend Forest Plan to acknowledge migration route.
By Cory Hatch, Jackson Hole, Wyo.
Federal land managers last week signed a pledge supporting efforts to protect the “path of the pronghorn” from Sublette County to Jackson Hole, one of the longest mammal migration corridors in North America.
http://www.jacksonholenews.com/article.php?art_id=2711

Great Smoky Mountain National Park:

"Great Smoky Mountains Snow Update"
GATLINBURG, Tenn (WVLT) -- It's a winter wonderland for many East Tennessee cities, towns, and counties.
But nowhere is there more snow than up on Mt. LeConte. Up on the peak, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has measured 17 inches of snow.
http://www.volunteertv.com/home/headlines/16046077.html

"Multiple Car Break-ins Reported at Great Smoky Mountains National Park"
by Josh Boatwright
NEWFOUND GAP – Rangers at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are investigating a series of vehicle break-ins last weekend at busy trailheads along Newfound Gap Road.
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080219/NEWS01/80219069/1119

"National Park sees Increased Visitation in 2007"
by Johnny Buck
Despite a record drought, Great Smoky Mountains National Park saw a slight increase in visitation for the 2007 calendar year compared to the 12 months prior.
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080207/OUTDOORS/80207044

"Smokies Ginseng Poachers Convicted"
by STAFF REPORTS
BRYSON CITY - Two North Carolina men were convicted and sentenced in Federal Court in Bryson City, on Jan. 24 of illegal possession of American ginseng in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080215/OUTDOORS/80215020

Misc. Park News:

"Change in National Park Gun Ban Stirs Concern"
The country's retired national park employees have been busy this week rallying in opposition to a plan that would allow people to carry loaded weapons inside park boundaries.
http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=7945320&nav=menu227_3


"Paul Urges Colleagues To Support Bills Aimed At Ending “Gun Free Zones”"
Congressman Ron Paul (R-Lake Jackson) has sent a letter to all members of the House of Representatives asking them to support three gun rights bills he is championing.
http://www.fortbendnow.com/pages/full_st...&open=&

"Park Rangers Oppose Bid to Ease Gun Ban"
By MATTHEW DALY
WASHINGTON (AP) — Park rangers, retirees and conservation groups are protesting a plan by the Interior Department to reconsider regulations restricting loaded guns in national parks.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5irWgvJzXz3UFknRjrJgjierKwnFwD8V1KB1O0

Olympic National Park:

"Tracking Down Lumber Thieves"
Peter Fimrite
Lumber thieves are stealing an ever-increasing amount of old-growth redwood from state and national parks, and rangers are having a hard time keeping up with the wily rip-off artists.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/29/BA40V0KVJ.DTL

"Park Fees Won’t Rise at Olympic National Park"
The News Tribune
Entrance and visitor use fees at Olympic National Park will remain the same through 2009. Acting park superintendent Sue McGill announced the decision earlier this week.
http://www.thenewstribune.com/adventure/story/295557.html

"Olympic National Park Damage in the Millions"
Peninsula Daily News
OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — Repair of damage to roads and trails from the Dec. 3 storm will cost probably $5 million, said Barb Maynes, Olympic National Park spokeswoman, although that is a preliminary estimate.
http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20080206/NEWS/802060304

Rocky Mountain National Park:

"Flight paths: Temporary closures enacted to protect nesting raptors in Rocky Mountain National Park."
By Kyle Patterson
Special to the Trail-Gazette
Each year to protect raptor nesting sites, Rocky Mountain National Park officials initiate temporary closures in the Lumpy Ridge and Sheep Mountain areas of the Park.
http://www.eptrail.com/pages/02friday_m/fri04.html

"Final Decision Released on Elk Management at Rocky Mountain National Park (Beware, potential voice ad inside)"
By Coloradoan staff
A long-awaited plan for managing vegetation and the elk population in Rocky Mountain National Park was formally approved Friday by the National Park Service.
http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080215/UPDATES01/80215055

"Feds May Raise Prices for Using Nearby National Forest Areas (Beware, Potential Voice Ad inside)"
By Trevor Hughes
U.S. Forest Service officials are considering changing the prices to use the Arapaho National Recreation Area and the Indian Peaks Wilderness.
http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080225/UPDATES01/80225037

"Thriving Canadian Wolves in Rocky Mountain States No Longer Endangered"
A pioneering group of Canadian wolves sent to the U.S. to re-establish wolf populations in the Rocky Mountain states has done so well the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ruled Thursday that they're no longer endangered - meaning that American hunters will soon be able to stalk them again.
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5huP5nN5Dgc7YBIFF0qn4xLrB6G_g

"Rocky Mountain National Park 'Pristine' No More: Six-year Study Says Parks Have Chemicals in Snow, Fish and Trees"
By Laura Snider
A study six years in the making reports that heavy metals and pesticides can be found in the water, plants and animals of 20 national parks -- including Rocky Mountain National Park -- that span the West from Alaska to the Mexican border.
http://dailycamera.com/news/2008/feb/28/rmnp-pristine-no-more/

Saguaro National Park:

"Saguaro National Park Celebrates 75 years"
By Doug Kreutz
Most of the people reading these words weren’t alive when Saguaro National Park was set aside as a federal preserve 75 years ago.
Ah, but here’s a telling fact: Many of the saguaro cacti now growing in the park were alive 75 years ago — and at least a few of them were already a century old at the time.
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/fromcomments/227524.php

Shenandoah National Park:

"Mountain Lion Sightings Stir Area Residents (beware, Pop-up Ads)"
By Bryan McKenzie
It weighs 200 pounds, is covered with hair, lives in the mountains…and may be stalking in Crozet.
http://www.newsvirginian.com/servlet/Sat...!news!localnews

"Too Many Bears?"
Dealing With Valleys Growing Population Becoming An Issue
By Hannah Northey
The Shenandoah Valley is bursting at the seams with black bears, creating headaches for some farmers, landowners and officials managing the animals.Virginia hunters killed a record number of bears last year, pulling in 1,633 of the animals, most of which came from Rockingham County, according to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
http://www.dnronline.com/news_details.php?AID=14982&CHID=1

"Park Preparing for Planned Burns"
Shenandoah National Park Superintendent Chas Cartwright announced that, weather permitting, the National Park Service will initiate several prescribed burns in Shenandoah National Park this year. Due to the
uncertainty of the weather, it is not possible to predict the exact dates.
http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/16124967.html

Yellowstone National Park:

"A Howl for Wolves"
On February 21, 2008, the U.S. Department of the Interior said that the Northern Rockies gray wolf is no longer an endangered species. It will now be up to the states in this region to manage gray wolf populations. These states include Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho, as well as parts of Washington, Utah, and Oregon. Populations of the gray wolf in the Midwest remain endangered.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/...__.5fbb9c6.html

"100 more Yellowstone Bison Captured; Total Tops 600"
By MATTHEW BROWN
BILLINGS — One hundred bison were captured for slaughter Thursday as they left Yellowstone National Park, bringing the total captured this winter to 617 under a program to keep the wild animals away from cattle.
The Montana livestock industry and government agencies say the bison could transmit a disease that causes some pregnant livestock to abort their calves.
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080228/NEWS01/80228020/1002

"Reversal Calls for Expanded Lynx Protection"
Proposal identifies 10,590 square miles near park for habitat
By MIKE STARK
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Thursday proposed a sweeping expansion of the amount of "critical habitat" for the threatened Canada lynx, including an additional 21,000 square miles in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho.
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/02/29/news/state/24-lynx.txt

"Scientist: Rabbit Gone From Yellowstone"
By MATTHEW BROWN
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A jack rabbit found throughout much of the West has disappeared from the Yellowstone area, although the reason why remains a mystery, a new study concludes.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i48wHqgQ8qU6T0OawXCiImMhTTNgD8UQFDIG0

Yosemite National Park:

"Modesto Boy Scout Killed in Yosemite Fall"
Written by Cornell Barnard, Reporter
Luis Ramirez always wanted to see Yosemite National Park. The 12-year-old got that chance last weekend, when his Boy Scout troop had a camping trip to Yosemite over the President's Day weekend.
http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=38628

"Getting Clear with Sierra Pacific Industries"
It is California's largest private landowner, with swaths of acreage that cascade from the state's far north all the way to Yosemite.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/29/BAE7UTPD6.DTL

"Where Conservation, Congregations Collide."
Yosemite plan struggling to balance crowds' environmental impact against visitor access
By Alex Breitler
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK - A 75-year-old grandmother hobbled up the granite staircase to the base of Vernal Falls. A fine spray moistened her face.
It was an experience the feeble woman could have only at Yosemite, where crowds of people gain easy access to the best splendor of the Sierra Nevada.
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080208/A_NEWS/802080324/-1/a_news14