Yellowstone Paddling Bill Passes House Committee

On October 8, 2015, a significantly amended Yellowstone and Grand Teton Paddling Act passed the House Natural Resources Committee. The amended bill, HR 974, would require the Parks to allow at least some amount of paddling on 50 specific rivers in the parks following a 3-year analysis and public process.

Yellowstone National Park banned river paddling to prevent overfishing in 1950.  Grand Teton National Park has allowed river paddling only on the Snake River since the 1960’s. While the Park Service generally encourages healthy outdoor recreation like river paddling, Yellowstone managers have refused to allow or consider allowing river paddling for decades.   

Park managers have been entrusted with ample and important flexibility in how they manage recreation. Responsible Park managers rely upon this flexibility to provide for sustainable recreation like paddling while protecting the environment. In Yellowstone though this trust has been violated, and paddling remains banned without cause.  

Local paddlers sought the only conceivable remedy: legislation to limit Park management’s flexibility.  A regional online news source reported that even staunch opponents of paddling in Yellowstone acknowledge that "the Park Service would not open rivers on Lummis’ list if the agency were not forced to do so." (source: WyoFile)

In their refusal to offer a science-based public process for considering paddling the Parks have created a polarized dilemma.  Legislating Park management is an unusual and extreme approach, in response to an unusual and extreme Park policy.  Only the Park Service has the power to offer a middle ground by offering a normal, public, scientific reconsideration of paddling.    

American Whitewater did not request or pursue HR 947, and as an organization we remain neutral on this bill. We strongly support the need for science-based river management in Yellowstone and Grand Teton that welcomes the public to experience the Parks through sustainable river paddling, just like other forms of legitimate human-powered backcountry recreation like backpacking. The Park Service can do this, and if they do their job the legislation wouldn’t be necessary.