by Yellowstonian
A recent move by the Trump Administration to overturn a 10-year-old finding that prevented a controversial recreation trail from being bulldozed through a fragile wildlife-rich corridor in Grand Teton National Park is now attracting national outrage.
The action also is bringing unprecedented negative scrutiny upon the Jackson Hole-based cycling group, Friends of Pathways and others in the community who prevailed in getting Administration political appointees to say the earlier body of evidence identifying serious concerns about wildlife doesn’t matter if the outcome serves outdoor recreation.
Barring legal challenges, the decision will allow seven miles of new riding trail to be constructed parallel to Moose-Wilson Road in the southwest corner of the park. It has an estimated cost of tens of millions of dollars to build.
A decade ago, a similar plan pushed by Friends of Pathways was rejected—read the rationale here— based on concerns about harm to wildlife and vital habitat as well as potential damage to archaeological sites thousands of years old. The new decision can be read by clicking here. It justifies the reversal on the Trump executive order titled “Making America Beautiful Again By Improving Our National Parks” that rescinds any rules deemed to “unnecessarily restrict recreation in national parks.”
Yellowstonian is working on a story about the decision, but above is a television segment featuring reporting by Jacob Soboroff whose 10-minute piece also alludes to the decision by the Trump Administration to potentially sell off part of Yosemite National Park in California.
Soboroff spoke with Jackson Hole resident Joan Anzelmo, a representative of the ad hoc group, Friends of the Moose-Wilson Corridor, that initially formed to oppose the trail. Anzelmo spent 35 years with the National Park Service. She served as a park superintendent, was a national spokeswoman for the agency and earlier was chief spokeswoman in Yellowstone. She says the decision violates the usual protocol of review as normally mandated under the National Environmental Policy Act and the National Park Service Organic Act. To learn more readers can contact her organization by sending an email to: mwf@wyoming.com
