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How Much Did Those New Units Of The National Park System Cost You?

Nov 10th - 15:57pm | Anonymous

Anon wrote, " And what does it cost us by the locking up of the resources in these newly protected lands."   I'm guessing the costs are more than offset by the economic impact of tourism as well as the value of the experience."

Nov 10th - 13:27pm | Anonymous

The real question is how much does it take away from the existing units by adding so many more by executive fiat when only so much money is availble for the whole system. And what does it cost us by the locking up of the resources in these newly protected lands.

Updated: Report Details How Corporate Pressure Seemingly Derailed Plans For a Plastic Bottle Ban at Grand Canyon National Park

Nov 10th - 15:24pm | Owen Hoffman

Boycott Coca Cola!  Corporations, regardless of the amount of their philanthropic contributions, should not have a major influence on the management of our national parks.  This is upsetting news. Ban the damned bottles.    

Nov 10th - 14:09pm | RangerLady

I would be more impressed if the NPS stopped their concessionaires from using plastic forks, knives, etc. I saw so much plasticware tossed about on the south rim and it was all stuff handed out by concessions. It really doesn't cost that much extra to use cornmeal based products that biodegrade.Of course I would also like to see all vending machines dissapear.

Nov 10th - 13:01pm | Rick B.

I'm a strong fan of both Director Jarvis and of the NPS in general, but this is a sad and disappointing report.

Nov 10th - 12:07pm | Anonymous

If banning isn't going to happen, then at least add a large, per bottle, deposit to encourage people to pick them up.  The damages to the Earth that these things are responsible for is a problem that will take a more concerted effort beyond the National Parks.  But a 25 cent per bottle deposit will at least keep the Park cleaner.  Although I'm sure, Coke will veto that as well.

Nov 10th - 11:45am | k d g

Follow the money, that usually explains it /review/2011/backpack-grand-canyon8973

Nov 10th - 11:14am | Michael Mariant

"...a bunch of recyclable bottles, buy water outside the park and fill them?" Not sure if you read the story completely, as it spells out all the locations that waters spigots for refilling water bottles are located, including the new ones that were built as well as the ones that the park concessionaires installed in all of their facilities.

Nov 10th - 11:01am | Ryan

If you cannot find a source of water other than a plastic bottle of water, then please stay in your home.  Plastic bottles are a scourge placed upon this planet by greedly profiteers.  Recycling the bottles is not the answer, banning them is.

Nov 10th - 10:55am | Gaelyn

One of the problems is recycling the plastic bottles. No one really wants the stuff and it ends up costing NPS to get rid of it appropriately. Water sold in bottles was still available on the North Rim this last summer in the Deli. Yet I saw a lot of people taking advantage of the new "spring water" dispensers. It's good water.

Nov 10th - 10:25am | Lee Dalton

Zion has a fine approach.  At several places around the park you can find water bottle filling stations with interpretive signs explaining the environmental costs of disposable bottles.  There were no water vending machines there.  (And I hope this is still true.)

Nov 10th - 09:52am | Anonymous

Isn't there a better way to solve the problem than banning water bottles in the desert?  How about invest in a recycling program instead?  I mean, what are hikers supposed to do for water, especially non-serious hikers?  Invest $100 for a water backpack or a bunch of recyclable bottles, buy water outside the park and fill them?  So, I couldn't go into a store on either rim and buy a bottle of w

Nov 10th - 09:25am | Anonymous

Interesting. It seems that Jon Jarvis’s hand is frequently seen near the cookie jar. /2011/10/national-park-superintendent-and-his-questionable-real-estate-deal8860

Nov 10th - 09:20am | Anonymous

Would hate to see people gample on their health by making a choice not to buy water instead of spening $10 on a reuable bottle.  Also, keep in mind that the small plastic bottles out of a machine are reusable.

National Park Mystery Photo 38: Not an Ordinary Donkey

Nov 10th - 13:55pm | Lindsey

My guess is Yellowstone.  I remember hearing about people throwing their toys into something, which caused it to be covered in hard surface.  Need help filling in the blanks in my memory.

Nov 9th - 16:53pm | Kurt Repanshek

Hmmm, an interesting guess ed-123, but wrong.;-)

Nov 9th - 16:47pm | ed-123

This appears to be coral, so i'm guessing Virgin Islands National Park

Nov 9th - 11:34am | RangerLady

I decided to do a Google image search to see if I could find this. I typed in "Donkey" and "National Park" and up came a picture of Jon Jarvis. I don't think I like google now...lol

Nov 9th - 11:08am | Anonymous

I also connected the Donkey image to the Grand Canyon in particular and possibly someplace in the SW.  Brighty is long gone (sad way Brighty went) but the connection for many with Donkeys/Mules and Grand Canyon NP is alive even with the elimination of the Donkeys and reduced opportunities for visitors to experience the Mule Ride into the Canyon.  

Nov 9th - 10:23am | Kurt Repanshek

Good thinking, Ranger Lady, but, unfortunately, incorrect...

Nov 9th - 10:20am | RangerLady

The only thing I can think of is Brighty of the Grand Canyon, but I don't remember seeing that anywhere and it certainly doesn't look like the statue at the North Rim.

Reader Participation Day: Should Economics Be Considered When Adding Units To The National Park System?

Nov 10th - 11:05am | Anonymous

Anon 10:26: "Will NPS ever receive a budget to continue adding parks without doing other parks dirty."   The answer to your question that came to my mind is that it will never happen as long as NPS has the attitude that Anon 3:05 expressed.   Gods above the realities of today, they aren't, although many would disagree. 

Nov 9th - 23:26pm | Anonymous

How much more deferred maintenance of buildings and structures can the NPS assume just to satisfy pork belly projects?  The new areas NPS gathers into its fold cost money to maintain.  Will NPS ever recieve a budget to continue adding parks without doing other parks dirty.

Nov 9th - 16:05pm | Anonymous

Economics are often a good way to convince skeptical locals that a park is a good idea. So they should be considered for that reason. But, the park needs to stand alone in value even without economics considered - bringing jobs to an area is not a reason to create a park, but is an added benefit.

Nov 9th - 13:10pm | dennis p lima

Yes, I agree that economics should be a consideration. We have spent so much money so foolishly in the past leaving us with trillion dollar deficits. It is time for some reality checks.

Nov 9th - 12:38pm | Anonymous

I believe if you do a biopsy on the extreme left and the extreme right in a blind test you'd find the same genetic makeup.  Anybody in the middle gets drowned out but there are elections that reflect something good occasionally for the majority in the middle.

Nov 9th - 11:34am | Rick B.

"The environment bubble"? The world you live in, you mean. The "reality" you've embraced includes the mining that reduces mountains to toxic rubble in West Virginia, and old growth forests reduced to stubble elsewhere, and black snow on the ground next to factory smokestacks.

Nov 9th - 09:47am | Anonymous

Look around and see what not considering economics has brought us to the brink of.   Many cases seem like an example of getting a loan to go to the Candy Store.  Ah, to live in the Environment Bubble.  In the 60's I dreamed of such a bubble but have since embraced reality after some hard lessons.  How glorious it would be to stay in the womb.  Some politicians have discovered that angle.  

Nov 9th - 08:14am | ecbuck

Ecominics should always be a consideration.  And I said "a" not "the".  But if the economics are so favorable to the local economy, then it would behoove the "locals" to  create the park like environment.  The Park Service's (federal) resources shouldn't be used just to help a local group.

National Park Mystery Photo 38 Revealed: A Very Special White Crust

Nov 10th - 08:27am | Bob Janiskee

If it gives you any comfort, ed 1-2-3, none of the other Traveler readers who struggled with this one did any better than you. 

Nov 10th - 07:33am | ed-123

Wow, I wasn't even close

Updated: The National Park Foundation And The Special "National Parks Edition" Toyota FJ Cruiser

Nov 10th - 03:29am | Anonymous

Great vehicle it has the sporty features of my dream SUV

October Visitation To Yellowstone National Park Was Good, But Not Record-Setting

Nov 9th - 22:19pm | Anonymous

This begs the question--is "record setting" monthly attendance a good thing??

Hunter, Thinking He Was In National Forest, Kills Bison Inside Grand Teton National Park

Nov 9th - 16:23pm | y_p_w

I'm pretty sure that hunters like hunting near protected areas because the animals can be really good specimens when they spend most of their time in those areas. It seems like one heck of a risk though, given that it's too easy to lose track of where the boundary line is.

Creature Feature: The Desert Tarantula Looks Big, Hairy, and Scary

Nov 9th - 10:23am | Bob Janiskee

The tarantula described in this article is the desert tarantula (Aphonopelma chalcodes). 

Nov 9th - 10:05am | Anonymous

Tarantulas live all over the united states, not just desert.

Four Men Given Jail Time For Digging Up Gingseng In Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Nov 9th - 09:13am | y_p_w

Daivd: Ginseng isn't endangered. It's grown all over the world.  Depends on the species. Wild ginseng fetches a premium price, and often they're getting scarce. One species in China is listed as an endangered species.

Nov 9th - 04:38am | dave

I remember seeing it when I was a kid. In the fall? With its red berry pods. I wonder how much logging affects it? Everybody seems to log around here as soon as the trees are the minimum size.

Nov 8th - 20:39pm | Daivd

Ginseng isn't endangered. It's grown all over the world.

Nov 8th - 16:43pm | Anonymous

Ginseng is the Appalachians’ most valuable legal crop, with the best profit potential. It could make forests profitable while owners wait for high-value timber to grow, but theft makes farming it impossible. The Appalachians are a poverty area because people can’t trust their neighbors to respect personal property and honest labor.

Study Points To Great Economic Beneft Of Arches, Canyonlands National Parks and Surrounding Recreational Lands

Nov 8th - 21:37pm | Wulverine

We did our part this summer. We were in Moab for 3 nights (Gonzo Hotel) and went to Canyonlands and Arches, a winery, Dead Horse Point State Park, Castle Rock, Big Bend Recreational Area, and had multiple dinners. I would say we contributed $750 to the local economy. Well worth it.

Chair Of House Subcommittee On National Parks Calls Parks, Other Federal Lands Unconstitutional

Nov 8th - 19:14pm | d-2

We should be blunt about Bishop and his kind that are flooding the cable networks and beginning to elect their clones to congress.  Bishop fundamentally opposes the constitution of the United States.

Nov 8th - 17:03pm | Anonymous

If the pendulum would just stop in the middle there wouldn't be a problem.   Make all of us in the middle pretty happy as uneducated and as incapable of making smart decisions as we may be.  

Nov 8th - 16:12pm | John

Having Rob Bishop as chair of the House subcommittee that oversees national parks and other federal lands is like having the fox as chair of the chicken house.  J.

Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park Joins National Park System

Nov 8th - 18:41pm | Jim Pepper

There are several important questions raised by commentors here. 

Nov 8th - 15:22pm | Anonymous

I agree with the above comments.  But, as I've opined before, it is Congress that makes the final decision after a special resource or new area study.  All too often Congress chooses to add a new park of lesser quality while rejecting areas receiving highly positive recommendations from the Park Service.

Nov 8th - 11:58am | Anonymous

Think Rick B has it right in what he posted.  I go farther.  Just political words of the moment. Deceptive symbolism more than likely but the ends justify the means for many.

Science Takes A Hit In President Obama's 2012 Budget

Nov 8th - 18:23pm | tomp2

I have my issues with what USGS decided to defund in their reorganization, but NBII is a bit old as an information portal.  DOI is not getting rid of public access to biological data, but reorganizing and consolidating the access.  Everything currently available via NBII will still be available, although based on what USGS did with their geospatial clearinghouse, it may be harder to grab, at le

Hiking the Appalachian National Scenic Trail: It Takes More Heart than Heel

Nov 8th - 15:33pm | Leanna Joyner

I shared this article with friends of mine who are hoping to hike the A.T. in the next few years. It's relevant for any hike, anywhere.

Nov 8th - 13:42pm | Holly Scott

Those hiking through the Smokies can thank the ATC and the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club's Appalachian Trail Maintainers for their volunter labor (of love) to remodel all of the backcountry hiking shelters along the A.T.

The Essential RVing Guide

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.

This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.

You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.

So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.