September 2003 -- After more than a decade of study, the Park Service decided to phase out noisy, polluting snowmobiles in Yellowstone National Park in favor of snowcoaches – cleaner, quieter vehicles that run on tracks. Snowcoaches would provide the same motorized access to Yellowstone but at much less health risk to visitors and less stress on wildlife. But the snowcoach plan was put on hold by the Bush Administration when it first came into office.
Now, despite its own additional study that came to the same conclusion about the many benefits of opting for snowcoach access over snowmobiles, the Administration is proposing that snowmobile use continue, and often at even higher levels than before!
Snowmobiles in Yellowstone can cause air pollution so severe that park employees sometimes don respirators to go to work. While a privileged few users rumble noisily on their snowmobiles, other winter visitors and the park’s wildlife are out of luck.
It's imperative for those of us who care about the long-term health of our National Parks to speak up and let the Bush Administration know that its plan is unacceptable. The Park Service is accepting comments on its plan right now (until Oct. 14, 2003), so please take action today by clicking here.
Background
Experts from both the EPA and the Park Service have repeatedly identified that the best way to protect Yellowstone is to ban snowmobiles and instead use snowcoaches.
Despite those findings, the agency has now proposed a new rule that would:
- Continue often dangerous or significant levels of pollution that could harm Yellowstone visitors and the park;
- Allow more snowmobile use, often at higher levels than ever before; and
- Continue haze and noise pollution around Old Faithful and other parts of the park;
Take Action
Please take action today and urge the Park Service to reject the current rule and instead support a snowcoach option that is backed by science and overwhelming public support.
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