Dear Public Lands Supporter,
This weekend, and on two more weekends this summer, you can express your support for fee-free access to Public Lands managed by the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, and you can have a great time doing it.
Just visit a National Park, National Monument, National Recreation Area, National Seashore, or National Historic Site - any public land managed by the National Park Service that normally charges an Entrance Fee.
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has announced that Entrance Fees will be waived at all National Park Service units on June 20-21, July 18-19, and August 15-16. Most Americans live less than a day's drive from an NPS unit, and you can click on an interactive map to find one near you at
http://www.nps.gov.
How will visiting a National Park help eliminate access fees by the Forest Service and BLM? Here's how.
Ever since Fee Demo in 1997, the federal land management agencies have refused to concede that access fees deter visitation. In the National Parks, the argument goes like this: "In the context of the expense of traveling to and visiting a National Park, the Entrance Fee is insignificant and so it has no effect on visitation." This is often expressed as a comparison, such as comparing the $25 entrance fee at Grand Canyon to the cost of taking your family to a movie.
If you think of Grand Canyon as just another market commodity, I suppose that argument makes sense. But most public lands supporters reject this type of comparison. We own our National Parks, we don't own the local cineplex!
These lands were not set aside to make a profit for the NPS, Forest Service, or BLM. They were set aside for the use and enjoyment of all Americans, we all support them with our taxes, and they should be places where everyone has access and is welcome. The goal should be to make it as easy as possible for Americans to enjoy their public lands, not to erect financial barriers against them.
Since 1997, while Park entrance fees have skyrocketed from $5 or $10 to as much as $25, and access fees to National Forests and BLM lands have spread across the landscape like a cancer, visitation to public lands has plummeted. When asked for reasons for the decline, the agencies have pointed to all sorts of possible causes: gas prices, terrorism, loss of interest in nature, the list goes on.
The one thing they have consistently refused to admit might be an influence: fees.
But now there's a new factor: the economy. Is there anyone out there that is not thinking a lot harder about spending $25 (or even $3 or $5 or $10) than you used to? The influence of these fees on travel decisions (and hence on local economies that rely on tourism) can no longer be denied!
In his announcement of these fee-free weekends, Secretary Salazar (who was a co-sponsor of Fee Repeal legislation when he served in the Senate) said he was taking this action specifically to encourage visitation and boost the economy. This is official acknowledgement at last that fees do deter visitation. You can read more about the announcement and Salazar's reasons for it HERE.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news ... ee-ap.htmlThe people who have been claiming for years that fees have no effect are predicting little difference in visitation this weekend compared to a normal summer weekend. I think they are wrong, and you can help prove it by taking advantage of this excellent opportunity. Visit one of our incomparable National Parks this weekend, or go boating at a National Recreation Area. Take the family to a National Historic Site or a National Seashore. Find a nearby Park Service location, go there, and have fun. The Park Service keeps careful statistics on visitation, and your presence will be noticed!
This is the easiest thing you've ever been asked to do to show your opposition to access fees for public lands - it's an offer you can't refuse!
Thanks for your support,
Kitty Benzar
President, Western Slope No-Fee Coalition
http://www.WesternSlopeNoFee.org
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