Tiny microbes living in the mud-pots and geysers of Yellowstone National Park have sparked a mammoth controversy. Scientists think the genetic materials of these microbes could lead to medical breakthroughs or, at the very least, improve consumer products. In 1997, park officials signed an agreement with a corporation that had previously been prospecting the […]
[…] the transfer of land from private ownership to government. The federal government’s track record for managing land is not a stellar one. To select a few examples: Yellowstone’s outmoded sewer system spews sewage into native trout streams and prehistoric dwellings in Mesa Verde National Park are disintegrating from a buildup of oils and airborne […]
[…] the Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Sierra Club to show you their maps of the ecosystems of the United States. They differ greatly. The so-called Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem can cover anywhere from 5 to 19 million acres, depending on who is defining it. These discrepancies occur because the human mind fabricates ecosystems. Nature […]
[…] maintenance, excessive spending, and neglect of natural resources.” Because the current system relies on congressional appropriations, park and forest managers must cater to Washington politics. For example, Yellowstone National Park has an outmoded sewer system that has discharged raw sewage into native trout streams. Yet Glacier National Park rebuilds a little-used backcountry chalet system […]
Bozeman Daily Chronicle August 4, 1999 By Richard Stroup The special corner of God’s country called Yellowstone National Park is constantly in the news — and the news is often bad. We learn that there are too many visitors, too many elk, too many crumbling roads, and not enough money. On July 25 […]
[…] provide quality wood products, but the same management techniques can also create forests that are hospitable to wildlife. Burn It! In 1988, fire burned nearly one-third of Yellowstone National Park, an area greater than the state of Delaware. “The changes in light were rapid, intense and immediate. From orange to startling white, to sepia […]
[…] habitat, and O’Neill’s company. Some of America’s most treasured natural landmarks were preserved by entrepreneurs. These “enviro-capitalists” captured the amenity values and profited from their preservation efforts. Yellowstone National Park owes its existence in large part to Jay Cooke of the Northern Pacific Railroad. Because he foresaw a lucrative business providing transportation and tourist […]
[…] prices, stores closed, and long-time residents left town. Joseph Frank Crisafulli, a local businessman, knew there was a hidden asset just outside of town, in the lower Yellowstone River. The paddlefish, a large bottom fish with a paddle-like snout, is prized for its white meat. It draws tourists each spring to the Glendive area. […]
[…] and enhance the recreational experience. Smart managers take fees collected from boaters for launch facilities and invest them in improving the sites. In national parks such a Yellowstone or Yosemite, higher entrance fees are giving park superintendents the resources necessary to improve roads, sewage systems, and interpretative exhibits. The adage “he who pays the […]
[…] out claim rights if it wants the use of the land for some other reason. This accounts for the celebrated Crown Butte case in an area near Yellowstone Park. Crown Butte has established discovery for a number of claims that had been mined periodically from the 1890s through the 1950s. (Often technological innovations will […]