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Former Katmai National Park Superintendent Fears Park Service Values Visitation More Than Bears

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Brown bears are drawn to the salmon-rich waters of Brooks River at Katmai National Parl/RLatson

A former Katmai National Park superintendent has written Interior Secretary Jewell with concerns over planned developments at the Brooks River in the park/Rebecca Latson

With construction expected to start soon on a major development plan for Brooks River in Katmai National Park in Alaska, a former park superintendent fears the Park Service is more concerned with visitation to the area than the bears that rely on its salmon-rich fishery.

Ray Bane, who managed the park in the late 1980s, outlined his concerns in an open letter to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell. In it he laid out what he believes is wrong with the decision to replace a floating bridge across the Brooks River that has had to be installed and removed every year with a 415-foot fixed bridge and boardwalk estimated to cost nearly $8 million. He also expressed disappointment that the Park Service had decided against moving "lodge facilities, the campground, NPS administrative structures and aircraft and boat docking operations" from the north side of the river to the south.

The Record of Decision signed in April 2013 to OK the project stated in part that, "Brown bears will benefit from the removal of the floating bridge, which is an obstruction to bears moving up and down Brooks River. Because the bridge and boardwalk are elevated 10 ft, bears will interact less with humans at ground-level which will allow them greater access to habitat, less stress, and easier movement."

But Mr. Bane, who shared his letter with the Traveler, told Secretary Jewell that when he was superintendent he oversaw completion of a Brooks River Area Development Concept Plan (DCP) that called "for the complete relocation of all developments from the north side of Brooks River to a location atop a low plateau south of the river. This is in keeping with findings and recommendations of research carried out by wildlife biologists, of the Katmai General Management Plan, and fundamental resource management standards of the NPS."

However, he added, political opposition to that plan prevented it from receiving the funds needed for implementation. 

"There was – and continues to be – resistance to setting limits on visitor numbers to prevent disrupting the natural dynamics of Brooks River and exceeding the management capabilities of the park staff," Mr. Bane wrote. "The Park Service found itself putting bureaucratic Band-Aids on a situation that is ultimately destined to fail, possibly catastrophically.

"... There is growing concern within conservation organizations and among other long-term supporters of Katmai that the National Park Service is effectively discarding the final DCP and incrementally accommodating increasing visitor use congestion and commercial operations within critical bear habitat. Based on research and discussions with individuals familiar with Brooks River developments, there is reason to believe these changes to the DCP reflect an informal decision to abandon efforts to relocate all Brooks Camp operations and facilities."

The former superintendent maintained in his letter that current management of the Brooks River bear-viewing area is, "in large part, based on a fallacy that, somehow, the bears that frequent the river are 'different' from other wild bears."

"I have heard visitors and even NPS employees refer to the bears of Brooks River as being 'good bears,' meaning that they are unusually tolerant of humans," wrote Mr. Bane. "What many fail to realize or knowingly ignore is that the behavior of the bears is linked to the abundance of salmon in Brooks River. The supply of salmon has been relatively plentiful and stable over the past few decades while visitation to Brooks River has grown exponentially. In effect, the NPS has been pushing the envelope in permitting the increasingly intense interaction between people and bears at Brooks River."

But in approving the plan, top Park Service regional officials maintained that, "(T)he elevated bridge, boardwalks, and viewing areas will greatly improve visitor safety and provide new bear viewing opportunities by vertically separating humans and bears, resulting in a localized, major, long-term, beneficial impact on visitor experience."

In his letter, Mr. Bane expressed worries that when salmon runs drop as part of a natural cycle, the bears that return to Brooks River will look for the closest alternative meal.

"From long personal experience with bears in wild settings, locked doors and shuttered windows will not stop a determined bear. They are amazingly intelligent, unimaginably strong, and single-mindedly determined creatures that will find ways of getting around man-made barriers," he wrote Secretary Jewell.

With a network of viewing platforms and walkways in the area, it likely would only be a matter of time before a visitor is attacked, the former superintendent wrote.

"It is in the best interest of the bears, visitors, and the NPS to remove all lodge facilities, the campground, NPS administrative structures and aircraft and boat docking operations away from heavily used critical bear habitat on the north side of Brooks River. Moving only NPS operations south of Brooks River does little to improve the situation unless accompanied by lodge facilities and access related activities – as called for in the Final Brooks River Area Development Concept Plan," he wrote. "Indeed, moving only part of Brooks Camp increases human traffic crossing the river and exacerbates an already strained setting."

At the end of the day, Mr. Bane concluded, "(T)he current management of Brooks River is substantially out of step with the recommendations of the Katmai General Management Plan, the original Brooks River Area Final Development Concept Plan, research findings and recommendations of eminent bear biologists, the management standards for bear viewing sites managed by other federal and state agencies and with the ideals set forth in the National Park Service Organic Act of 1916 and Redwood Act of 1978."

Comments

Thank you Traveler for this informative post, having little knowledge of the issue, but knowing that former Supt. Ray Bane is an accomplished professional, I suspect he is right. Thank you Ray Bane for speaking out on the issue.


As Congress cuts funds for preservation and talk radio hammers environmentalists, climate change and science itself, I have realized that some imperfect actions must be taken and tolerated to encourage another generation to appreciate remaining wild places and its inhabitants. Some whales must be hassled so that people can see them close up and become part of the constituency for preserving them. Same for bears and other animals. You can be a purist, win some battles, but then lose everything to Congress and the next generation which won't care about these animals and protecting habitat because they've never witnessed them. All they will want is drilling everywhere for cheaper oil because they see Fox, not foxes.


The NPS values visitation because that gives them numbers. And numbers equates to dollars. And dollars are all Jarvis and his cabal care about.


Thank you for publishing excerpts from my letter to Sec. Jewell re: Brooks River. Just a few minor corrections: The Final Brooks River DCP was completed after I had transferred from Katmai. Also, my primary concern that the existing Brooks Camp complex remains in place is to prevent negative interactions that could jeopardize visitor safety and contribute to negative impacts to the bear population. Eminent bear biologists, including Dr. Barrie Gilbert, have withdrawn their endorsement of the Final Brooks River Development Concept Plan based on the fundamental changes called for in the to the "amended" plan that includes the building of an enlarged and costly fixed bridge and related developments. Until commercial facilities and related operations are removed from the existing Brooks Camp location the natural and cultural resources of Brooks River will be compromised. The growing complex of elevated walkways, viewing platforms, and rapidly increasing visitor numbers plus the intense concentration of aircraft operations along the adjacent lake beach is creating a setting more in keeping with an amusement park than with a national park.


May I second the comments of both Ron and Anon? Well stated.


Mr. Bane makes sense in regard to the impact on Brooks Falls habitat. The Pacific Coast of Katmai is another story.

Living and operating 24/7 on the Pacific Coast of Katmai for the last 29 years we have observed a declining number of bears and damaged habitat caused by a terrific increase in human impact. In 2005 a new predator to this majestic and well guarded paradise came upon the scene, the "pilot guided bear viewing flights". By eliminating the naturalist guide accompanying the flight there is yet another revenue seat to sell on the aircraft. Thus without the addition of the naturalist guide to the flight, there is no one to control or take responsibility for the pilots or guests actions. Various air services from Homer and Kodiak have gone on to truly plunder the wonderful bear viewing resources that existed in the accessible coastal area for quick cash. In the past the locally based air services provided transportation for the day tour guides and their guests and this majestic paradise was protected by true wilderness men and women who lived, worked, contributed and took the responsibility of not impacting the area or the bears by self limiting their guest numbers. All that has changed with the advent of the "pilot is your guide" operations that migrated from the States and the bear sport hunting areas to take advantage of the wonderfully protected habitat of bears and other wildlife on the Pacific coast of Katmai. The efforts, sacrifices and contributions by honorable conservation minded naturalist guides to maintain a quality visitor experience while protecting these majestic resources is now being plundered by increasing numbers of very short duration out of control pilot guided tours. The pilot guides adhere to the policy of "more is better" and "we can move to the next area when there are no more bears here". The Katmai National Parks Rangers seem to be so infatuated with being interviewed on the Brooks Falls webcams that they have forgotten about enforcing the rules and addressing the impact in the coastal areas of the Park. More than 2000 small aircraft flights occurred between June and September to 3 locations on the Pacific Coast of Katmai in 2014.

Additionally a "special interest" bear collaring operation is now taking place without purpose or "Determination of Need" as required by the NPS before embarking on such a project and the opportunity for public comment was not provided. In addition to traumatizing mother bears with cubs by hazing them out of cover with a screaming helicopter flying at tree-top level until they are so exhausted they stop and turn to fight to protect their cubs from the helicopter, they are then darted and fitted with blow-off collars by the operators who then spray paint the bears GREEN. All this with without need or purpose, now or in the future, but because some wannabe biologist got a pocketful of money. It should be further noted that helicopters are forbidden anywhere in Katmai National Park for any purpose other than life saving emergencies, buy here we have someone treating your National Park like a private laboratory with mother bears as the lab rats in this case.

It is time to wake up people to what is occurring in your National Parks that were set aside to preserve and protect the wildlife and their natural habitat for the enjoyment of the American people. On a humorous note, it has been suggested that Denali National Park be renamed to "Carnival's National Park" due to the Holland America (a member of the foreign flagged Carnival Cruise group) buses taking precedence. You Americans that the Parks were in part set aside for, well you have to apply in a lottery and win in order to drive into this Park. I have only touched the tip of the iceberg herein.

Clint Hlebechuk


Sounds like what they did at Fish Creek in Hyder, AK. The boardwalk they built for viewing is above ground, instead of on it. I think it made things better for people and bears alike.


This is more of an observation than anything else.  Having traveled to Katmai National Park in 2013, I can attest to the growing number of visitors to the park.  This includes not only those who have made reservations with the lodging concession but also the myriad numbers arriving via flight tours for a day of bear watching.  I am totally amazed there have been no bear attacks on humans given the fact that bears and humans share the same roads and trails to and from not only the lodge and campground but also the viewing platforms. I hope that the salmon continue to be plentiful in the Brooks River because their numbers have probably saved human visitors in untold ways.  Of course, it's still within the realm of possibility that someday, some tourist is going to do something really stupid, even with the salmon running, and the more tourists that are allowed into the park, the greater that possibility. 


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