Hey Guys,
Slow news day today. Probably the most interesting piece for me was to do with the Everglades and the pairing of the legislation with the travel to Cuba. What an odd combination.
Big Bend NP:
State poised to OK Big Bend clean-air plan
But proposal to clear up haze misses federal goal by 91 years
Big Bend National Park is known for its jagged beauty, but sometimes the mountains are blotted from the horizon by a sky the color of mud.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6277462.htmlEverglades NP:
U.S. House bill due for vote would address travel to Cuba, Everglades restoration
WASHINGTON - The House plans is to vote this week to roll back restrictions on Cuban-American travel to Cuba and to provide the first federal money for comprehensive Everglades restoration.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/sfl-flabill0224sbfeb24,0,1596165.story
Boat dealer sued over damage to sea grass
MANATEE COUNTY - A 72-foot yacht from Marlow Marine Sales in Palmetto departed for a Miami boat show in 2006, but strayed from a deep channel in Everglades National Park and ran aground on Arsenic Bank.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20090223/ARTICLE/902230336/0/SPORTSSenator Muddies Everglades
Bradenton Sen. Mike Bennett has come up with a slippery way to kill Everglades restoration. He's demanding the state's plan to purchase 180,000 acres in the Everglades from U.S. Sugar be put to a vote by affected taxpayers.
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/feb/24/na-senator-muddies-everglades/Grand Teton NP:
Grand Teton investigates snowmobiling in video
JACKSON - Officials in Grand Teton National Park say they're investigating a YouTube video that shows skiers riding a snowmobile over Jackson Lake.
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2009/02/22/news/wyoming/17-snowinvest.txtGreat Smoky Mountain NP:
Decision clears the way for new Smokies visitor center
Great Smoky Mountains National Park – Officials at Great Smoky Mountains National Park have found that construction of a new Oconaluftee Visitor Center will have no significant environmental impact, clearing the way for construction of the new visitor center on Newfound Gap Road.
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200990224025Impact statement clear new Smokies center
The National Park Service is cleared to build a new visitor center on the North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/4600510/Hiking website for Smoky Mountains wins American Trails award
HikingintheSmokys.com named the best website for Trails on Federal Lands
American Trails, the only national, nonprofit organization working on behalf of all trail interests, announced the winners of its 2008 American Trails Website Contest yesterday.
http://www.outdoornewswire.com/v/current...349643d35343737Misc. Parks News:
Snowmobiling and national park boundaries
A few weeks of blue sky and improving snow stability has people venturing out all over the mountains -- many on snowmobiles. Without much new snow, people are putting in bold lines and venturing further afield in the search of fresh tracks.
http://www.bclocalnews.com/lifestyles/40193438.htmlTHE ROAD LESS TRAVELED
TOUR OPERATORS WORK TO STAY PROFITABLE DURING ECONOMIC DOWNTURN (Mostly about DV and GC)
here's no recession at Quartermaster Point. The view from this limestone outcropping at the west rim of the Grand Canyon overwhelms the brain's capacity to fear falling home prices or obsess over waning job prospects.
http://www.lvbusinesspress.com/articles/2009/02/23/news/iq_26735315.txt Retezat National Park ranks 7th in race for World’s 7 new Wonders
Mojave National Preserve:
Supreme Court to hear Mojave cross case
Justices will decide whether the monument can stand in a national preserve to honor fallen soldiers. It will be the Roberts court's first chance to rule on separation of church and state.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/washingtondc/la-na-supreme-court-cross24-2009feb24,0,86113.story
Outside the US/Canadian Parks System:
$45M for visitor centre at Kaieteur National Park
The Kaieteur National Park has been awarded a $45M grant to construct a visitor arrival centre near the Kaieteur Falls.
http://www.stabroeknews.com/2009/news/local/02/24/45m-for-visitor-centre-at-kaieteur-national-park/Clock ticking on Costa Rica national park closure
The clock continues to tick for Manuel Antonio National Park, which has until Thursday to correct health and sanitary problems or face closure at the hands of the Health Ministry.
http://www.ticotimes.net/dailyarchive/2009_02/0224091.htmIsland to become national park
Island of Harris votes in favour of National Park status
http://www.journal-online.co.uk/article/5486-island-to-become-national-parkThe Retezat National Park (PNR) located in south-western Romania ranks 7th in the forests, national parks and natural reserves category in the second voting stage of the online campaign led by the Swiss New7Wonders organization for the designation of the Nature's new seven wonders, the Cotidianul newspaper writes on Monday. In December 2008 the Romanian Natural Reserve entered the race among round 250 nominees of the first race's stage, selected from 441 initial proposals, currently ready to enter the top 77, the next stage the audience started voting last month.
http://www.financiarul.ro/2009/02/23/ret...-7-new-wonders/Yellowstone NP:
Eco-friendly choices make sense for National Parks
A recent story in the Casper Star-Tribune outlined the many ways Wyoming’s national parks are becoming more environmentally friendly.
http://powelltribune.com/index.php/content/view/755/2/
