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October 15, 2004
News Release From:
BLUERIBBON COALITION, INC.
www.sharetrails.org
Federal
Judge Strikes Down Yellowstone Snowmobile Ban
CHEYENNE, WY- A Wyoming federal judge has agreed with
pro-access interests, snowmobile manufacturers, local
business owners and the states of Wyoming and Montana
in striking down a rule that would have banned
snowmobiles from Yellowstone National Park. On October
14, 2004, U.S. District Judge Clarence Brimmer penned
the latest chapter in the ongoing dispute over winter
access to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks,
in the case initially brought in 2000 by the BlueRibbon
Coalition, the International Snowmobile Manufacturers
Association and other snowmobile supporters. The
States of Wyoming and Montana joined in these efforts
to overturn a rule finalized in early 2001, on the last
day of the outgoing Clinton administration, which would
have restricted motorized winter access to the Parks to
mass-transit “snowcoaches.” Judge Brimmer concluded
that the Park Service violated federal law “in its rush
to push through the politically predetermined ban on
snowmobiles in the Parks.” Judge Brimmer further noted
that “in a case as important as this, where the agency
action was driven by political haste, poor judgment,
and only pro forma compliance with [required
procedures], it is the province of the Court to vacate
the…2001 Snowcoach Rule.”
“This is a great victory for those who
believe that active and well-reasoned management can
best address Yellowstone’s winter access issues, stated
Jack Welch, President of the BlueRibbon Coalition.
“This decision to ban snowmobiles was a political
reward for aggressive and well-funded special
interests, but those looking closely at that decision
realize it was built on flawed science and was
implemented through illegal shortcuts. Reasonable
people agree the Park Service should allow regulated
snowmobile access to these special destinations,” Welch
concluded.
Judge Brimmer’s order vacates the 2000
planning effort and resulting 2001 final rule, and
remands those actions to the Park Service for further
proceedings. The Park Service is presently analyzing
an interim snowmobile assessment and administrative
rule. The agency anticipates concluding these analyses
by mid-November, in anticipation of the traditional
mid-December opening of Yellowstone’s winter recreation
season.
# # #
The BlueRibbon
Coalition is a national recreation group that champions
responsible use of public and private lands, and
encourages individual environmental stewardship. It
represents over 10,000 individual members and 1,100
organization and business members, for a combined total
of over 600,000 recreationists nationwide.
1-800-258-3742. www.sharetrails.org
Dec. 17, 2003
Judge Bans
Snowmobiles entirely from Yellowstone!
Dec. 16 - From the ARRA
On December 16, 2003, U.S.
Federal District Judge Emmet Sullivan awarded the anti-access
community a large victory by overturning the National Park
Service's revised plan to permit snowmobile access to Yellowstone
and Grand Teton National Parks.
To
read more about this decision, click here.
ARRA believes that this is a most unfortunate decision and a
setback for the recreation community by limiting recreational
opportunities in the wintertime in these two important parks.
ARRA and other pro-access groups must re-double our efforts to
ensure the American people will be able to enjoy their public
lands during all seasons of the year. You can help spread the
word by clicking here and sending this message along to others.
Encourage them to stay informed by signing up to receive ARRA's
legislative updates.
Dec. 17
- From the Blue Ribbon Coalition
http://www.sharetrails.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, December 17,
2003
Judge Bans Winter Access to Yellowstone and Grand Teton
WASHINGTON (December 17) - On the eve of the official winter
season in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, D.C.
district Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled late Tuesday to outlaw
snowmobile access to the parks after 2004. In an exceptional
display of what can only be described as environmental elitism,
the judge's opinion reflects an extreme position effectively
banning the public from much of the park during the winter
months.
"Federal judges continue to abuse their authority by legislating
from the bench," said House Resources Committee Chairman Richard
W. Pombo (R-CA). "This judge in particular seems to have a
penchant for locking out the public and refuses to apply common
sense in interpreting the spirit and intent of the law. It
appears that a shrill, vocal minority need only get the ear of a
single judge in Washington and our representative government goes
out the window. This trend must change."
Unfortunately, the harm of today's decision is not limited to
those who would spend a few hours or days visiting the park.
Rather, the gateway communities surrounding park entrances, whose
economic vitality is closely tied to park visitation, will suffer
the most. Take West Yellowstone, Montana, for example. Currently
bustling pancake houses, motels, trinket shops, and other small
and family-run businesses in this rustic mountain town rely on
winter traffic for their livelihood.
In addition to decimating neighboring communities, the judge's
decision marks a dangerous precedent for vehicular access to
America's park system. Like auto traffic, snowmobile use is
strictly limited to roads. The latest rule published by the
National Park Service allows only 1140 snowmobiles to enter the
parks on a daily basis, compared to more than 1.5 million cars,
trucks and motorcycles that travel its roads annually.
Ironically, critics condemn snowmobile use in the park claiming
excessive noise and air pollution. But statistics show that
ambient air quality standards have never been exceeded during the
winter in the history of these parks.
Certainly, the environmental impact of unbridled snowmobile use
cannot be ignored. However, at the other extreme lies a
heavy-handed prohibition like the Clinton-era rule championed by
radical environmentalists. With a long history of arguing that
public lands must be preserved for tourism and recreation, these
same groups have flipped their position in this case and are now
attacking tourism and recreation through the courts.
The remedy is a common sense approach demanding high
environmental standards and managed use while still allowing for
wintertime excursions. The plan overturned today by Judge
Sullivan strikes that much needed balance. Implementing the first
ever restrictions to wintertime access to any national park; it
calls for strictly guided tours and caps the number of
snowmobiles entering the park daily. It also requires that
drivers be licensed and mandates the use of the best available
technology, cutting noise and pollution to a minimum.
"If environmental extremists continue to have their way, people
will be looking at Yellowstone through a plate glass window,"
said Pombo. "What the extremists were not able to accomplish by
changing the law, they are attempting to accomplish by using the
courts via a handpicked judge in Washington." ### |
