Two More Parks Threatened by Haze

It's well-known that air pollution is a major problem for many of our parks. Sequoia and Great Smoky Mountains are two that come to mind. Not only are the views in those parks shrinking, but the air can be just plain bad to breath on the worst days.
Unfortunately, it sounds like things are going to get worse before they get better. The Bush administration's misguided energy policy has Interior Secretary Gale Norton pushing the Bureau of Land Management to give top priority to oil and gas leasing. In western Wyoming, that directive has led to plans to add 3,100 well sites on public lands near Pinedale...and in the general vicinity of Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks.
According to environmental groups that have looked at the BLM's plans, those wells could create a month of hazy days for three wilderness areas in the immediate vicinity, and there could be air-quality impacts on the two parks as well. You can read all about this problem in the Christian Science Monitor.