Posted on 02/07/2012 5:54:01 AM PST by SJackson
(Grand Canyon, AZ) - Grand Canyon National Park will eliminate the in-park sale of water packaged in individual disposable containers within 30 days under a plan approved Monday by National Park Service (NPS) Intermountain Regional (IMR) Director John Wessels. Free water stations are available throughout the park to allow visitors to fill reusable water bottles.
The park’s plan calls for the elimination of the sale of water packaged in individual disposable containers of less than one gallon, including plastic bottles and various types of boxes. The waste associated with disposable bottles comprises an estimated 20 percent of the park’s overall waste stream and 30 percent of the park’s recyclables.
Grand Canyon National Park’s plan was submitted and approved in accordance with the policy issued by NPS Director Jonathan B. Jarvis on December 14, 2011. Under the policy, parks are directed to implement a disposable plastic water bottle recycling and reduction policy, with an option to eliminate in-park sales – with the approval of the park’s regional director – following a thorough analysis of a variety of factors ranging from the cost to install water filling stations, to the cost and availability of BPA-free reusable containers, to potential effects on public safety.
Regional Director Wessels said, “Our parks should set the standard for resource protection and sustainability. Grand Canyon National Park has provided an excellent analysis of the impacts the elimination of bottled water would have, and has developed a well-thought-out plan for ensuring that the safety, needs and comfort of visitors continue to be met in the park," he said. "I feel confident that the impacts to park concessioners and partners have been given fair consideration and that this plan can be implemented with minimal impacts to the visiting public," Wessels added.
Grand Canyon National Park has experienced increasing amounts of litter associated with disposable plastic bottles along trails both on the rim and within the inner canyon, marring canyon viewpoints and visitor experiences.
“We want to minimize both the monetary and environmental costs associated with water packaged in disposable containers,” said Grand Canyon Superintendent Dave Uberuaga. “We are grateful to the Director for recognizing the need for service-wide guidance on this issue and for providing a thoughtful range of options.”
“A lot of careful thought went into this plan and its implementation,” said Director Jarvis. “I applaud Grand Canyon National Park for its efforts to reduce waste and the environmental impacts created by individually packaged water. This is another example of The National Park Service’s commitment to being an exemplar of the ways we can all reduce our imprint on the land as we embrace sustainable practices that will protect the parks for generations to come.”
Read more: KCSG Television - Grand Canyon National Park to Eliminate Sale of Water in Disposable Containers
Coming soon, this headline:
National Part service agrees to transfer park deed to vacationers’ estates, in lieu of massive lawsuit punative damages, in controversial “Waterbottle-gate” park dehydration deaths.
Stupid comment. There are many, many, many places throughout the Grand Canyon National Park where people can fill up their own container that is not intended to be disposible -- you know, the plastic containers available at just about every mini-mart and gift shop for about $2.00. I wish we didn't need a regulation like this, but when you have incredibly selfish, stupid, indifferent people who leave their trash behind, then unfortunately, we all have to suffer.
There is also the fiscal issue: Garbage is expensive and when the gov't is running trillion dollar deficits, every penny counts. I wish every gov't agency made a real effort to cut costs. A million here and a million there adds up to a lot of millions, which become billions. Time to suck it up.
Tusayan stores overjoyed!!!
General Store at Market Plaza
DNPS operates a full-service grocery and department store with camping equipment sales/ rental. Digital photo printing is available. Open daily year-round, 8am to 7pm, additional open hours vary seasonally.
You can STILL get yer Cokes®, Mountain Dew® and Green© Cow Juice in yer favorite PLASTIC bottles here!
The fools should USE human nature instead of trying to fight it!!
Charge 10 cents refundable deposit on the bottles and the things will turn themSELVES in!
Ya beat me to it!
They DO sell those bottles now!
Not 'PC'; but CONTROL.
Indeed!
There are a LOT of us on this thread!!
GMTA!
One can find water in nearly indestructable bottles in the Juice aisle at Wal-Mart®.
Once you drink up the mixture of flavoring, colorant, vitamins and water in it, you can rinse and fill with water for your trip on the trail.
Where in the area do they not have water fountains, you do know what a water fountain is??? http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/refilling_stations.htm
The Make-a-Wish Foundation called; and yours has come TRUE!!!
We DON'T 'need' this regulation CONTROL METHOD.
Probably so. They’ll have to dig for it or cut open cactus. I’m in the eastern woodlands area. Plenty of water.
Are you talking of the OUT-OF-WORK folks?
Heck; they ain't DOIN' nutthin', and they'd probably REALLY like to be able to afford a nice vacation; so let's just ship 'em to Northern Arizona with trash bags and kill (oops) two birds with one stone!!
I've read rescue reports from out of MOAB about a couple who were rafting or kayaking or something on the Colorado, below Moab in Cayonlands.
Seems they got tossed into the drink and lost all their stuff.
They made it to shore just fine, and they were found a few days later by others going down the river.
The man had died of dehydration. Yup, you heard that right!!
The woman said he REFUSED to drink the river water because he was afraid of ingesting Giardia lamblia; thereby getting sick!
As a Climate Friendly Park, Grand Canyon National Park's staff, partners and stakeholders have made a commitment to take a leadership roll in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and educating the public about what they can do to reduce their impacts on the park.
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“Put a fifty-cent stamped deposit on bottles sold in the park,...”
Then you’d find enterprising “business people” making fake stamped bottles and carrying em in for return!
I always thought we would let markets decide such.
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