By Holly Sharpless

The flurry of activity surrounding snowmobiles in national parks reached new heights in 2000. The public sentiment and action sparked by this issue have brought much attention to NPS attempts to refine its snowmobile policy and ensure compliance with existing executive orders requiring monitoring of off-road vehicle use. To the Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Directorate, the issue of snowmobiles has proven to be an opportunity where natural resource information and expertise can help shape national policy and management decisions.

In January 1999 the National Park Service received a petition from the Bluewater Network, a coalition of environmental organizations, requesting it to begin immediate rule making to prohibit snowmobile use within units of the national park system. This petition sparked the process of gathering information concerning such things as snowmobile use patterns, known impacts on park resources and values from use, and what monitoring, if any, was being conducted at parks. In February 2000 the National Park Service held a two-day snowmobile “summit,” which was attended by both Department of the Interior officials and superintendents from parks with snowmobile use. The summit provided a chance to review the information that had been gathered over the previous year and to evaluate information on the environmental impacts from snowmobile use. During the summit, representatives from the NPS Natural Resource Program Center shared summaries of literature surveys from their respective areas of expertise and presented available data concerning possible environmental impacts (i.e., impacts to air and water quality, the soundscape, and wildlife).

In April 2000 the Department of the Interior held a press conference to announce that the Park Service would significantly reduce recreational snowmobile use in national parks. The following month, the Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks testified on behalf of the Park Service at both House and Senate hearings. Representatives from the snowmobile industry, outdoor recreation associations, local communities, and environmental organizations also testified. Congressional interest in this issue is expected to remain high throughout 2001.

In order to ensure compliance with the monitoring requirement of the executive orders, the Natural Resource Directorate has been working with the Operations Directorate on the design and development of a monitoring plan for parks with snowmobile use. Protocols for monitoring air, water, soundscape, and wildlife impacts are currently being developed. The NPS Inventory and Monitoring Program, for which funds have been requested as part of the Natural Resource Challenge, may provide an initial framework for parks to begin building a strategy for monitoring snowmobile use and impacts. In addition the Water Resources Division will be implementing a study in 2001 and 2002, funded through the Recreational Fee Demonstration Program, of the presence or absence of snowmobile contaminants in water resources at some of the parks currently allowing snowmobile use.

In 2000 the Park Service initiated the rulemaking process for the phaseout of snowmobiles at Yellowstone National Park in accordance with Yellowstone’s Winter Use Plan Record of Decision. The final rule was published in the Federal Register on 22 January 2001. Further rule making for the remainder of the parks with snowmobile use has been initiated, but had not been released for public comment at year’s end.

Discussions surrounding winter uses of our national parks such as snowmobiles will continue into the future. With the natural resource information and data gathered from monitoring programs, NPS managers will be better equipped to make informed decisions by knowing the nature and extent of winter use impacts on park resources and values.