Yellowstone
National Park
OVERVIEW
Above is a map of Yellowstone Park as it is outlined by the states of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho.
HISTORICALLY
Even before
Yellowstone became a National Park, it was a beautiful ecosystem that
entertained many types of animals, trees, and people. Yellowstone was home to many different native
tribes that used the land that contains numerous rivers and vegetation to
survive off of. “American Indians
created trails across the Yellowstone landscape,” (3) in this, the trails that
were then cutting across the landscape offered a way for the Indians to move to
and from Yellowstone across the vast expanses of land without getting injured
by unstable ground (3). Yellowstone was
also an area that allowed many visiting tribes, because of the many thrilling
attractions and sources of aid and nutrition, “American Indians tell us that
their ancestors did not fear the geysers, but rather respected the possible
danger they represented” (3). Later,
the Yellowstone area was declared a National Park and in doing so, it ensured:
“To conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife
therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such
means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations”(3).
The previous years involved many poachers, administrators and other people who
came to Yellowstone to abuse the land and take the natural resources which
Yellowstone provided (3). In doing this,
the natural land was becoming depleted of resources and animals were being
threatened.
Another element of the ecosystem historically was fire. Given that Yellowstone National Park is
located in a temperate zone; fire is a necessary element for the ecosystem to
maintain itself. Fires release all kinds
of nutrients which may not be released if no fire is present (4); thus without
fires, the ecosystem would not be able to maintain the constant level of
organisms it houses.
Below is a photo from 1872 when Yellowstone
was first established as America’s (and the world’s) first National Park. 
PRESENT AND
THE HUMAN IMPACT
As an
ecosystem, Yellowstone “is one of the largest intact temperate-zone ecosystems
on Earth today,” (4). The temperate zone,
in which Yellowstone is situated, is described as being hot in the summer
months, frigid in the winter, and fluctuating between hot and cold temperatures
as the months proceed (5). Yellowstone
still has many species of animals including every main predator and prey that
was here when the Europeans first set foot here (4). The amount of animals has been a great attraction
for visitors who want to see all types of animals that they may not be able to
see in one place. However, even with the major influx of people on Yellowstone,
the ecosystem still maintains “nearly all living organisms present in
pre-Columbian times” (2). Yellowstone
has also opened itself to many visitors who come annually to see the beautiful
geysers, and among these, particularly world famous Old Faithful. Old Faithful erupts every 45 to 110 minutes
and does so about 21 times a day (7), allowing copious amounts of visitors to
watch and see the spectacle. Below is a
photo of Old Faithful mid-eruption hosting a large crowd of people.
Yellowstone,
like many other national parks, hosts many visitors year round and the
population often fluctuates from year to year. Here is a graph that represents
the past five years of tourism to Yellowstone:
Information
for this graph taken from: http://www.nps.gov/yell/parknews/12002.htm
Many concerns arise when discussing the
human impact because, as in any beautiful area and ecosystem, people are bound
to visit, bringing a multitude of non-native elements to the system. Fire has always been a major topic of
discussion, because although fire is necessary to the ecosystem (4), scientists
often wonder whether fire is good and to what extent it should be allowed to
continue burning the landscape. The
fires of 1988 were a major issue of discussion as they burned more than 1.2
million acres (6). In analyzing the
effect of the fires, “most wildlife populations showed no effect or rebounded
quickly from the fiery summer” (6). The
fires in 1988 were the largest since 1872 (8,9). Thus, the humans who created nine of the fires
were less at fault than the forty-two fires started by natural causes (10). Hence, although fire is a large issue the
main question is whether or not to allow the fires to continue to burn and
deplete the land of its outer layering on the ground.
Source: http://www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2008/06/yellowstone-national-parks-historic-1988-fire-season
HUMAN
IMPACTS AND THE FUTURE
Overall, humans have had a positive effect on Yellowstone
National Park. Although there will
always be problems with the land, there are people who want to protect the land
for its pure and natural beauty. Given
the fact that the Yellowstone is a National Park, it will always have a society
looking after the welfare of the park resulting in the fact that, while other
parks may have unlimited amounts of visitors, Yellowstone will always have
regulations as to how many people will be affecting the ecosystem at a certain
time. Without the protection of Yellowstone
now, it could be depleted like other lands around the world. Below is a table outlining the laws that
established the National Park System as a whole and this timeline is how
Yellowstone was granted its protections.
Year, Law
|
Protection Listed
|
1872 Yellowstone National Park Act
|
Established Yellowstone as America’s
first National Park.
|
1906 Antiquities Act
|
Protects historical landmarks,
structures and made it so that any excavation would have to be approved by
the government.
|
1916 Organic Act
|
Established the National Park Service.
|
1933 Reorganization
|
Made historical preservation the
primary concern for the National Park Service.
|
1935 Preservation of Historic Sites
Act
|
Preserve historic sites for the
benefit of others.
|
1964 Wilderness Act
|
Secured wilderness areas.
|
1965 Land and Water Conservation Fund
Act
|
Made a fund for getting new land close
to the area of Yellowstone.
|
1966 National Historic Preservation
Act
|
Made it so that all historical parks
must be included in the National Register of Historic Places.
|
1968 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act
|
Protected certain rivers that have
historic, cultural or other significance.
|
1968 National Trails System Act
|
Established trails.
|
1969 Volunteers in the Park Act
|
Provided vehicles for volunteers to
help serve the park.
|
1969 National Environmental Policy Act
|
The federal agencies must perform
their duties with the least environmental impact possible.
|
1970 General Authorities Act
|
All areas may be managed for “park,
monument, historic, parkway, recreational, or other purposes.” (14)
|
1973 Endangered Species Act
|
Federal agencies must be sure to not
harm any endangered species by their acts.
|
1978 Redwood National Park Expansion Act
|
The area covered by the National Park
was extended so that the Redwoods would be ensured safety.
|
1978 National Parks and Recreation Act
|
Added 15 places to the National Park
system.
|
1979 Archeological Resources Protection
Act
|
Protects archeological sites.
|
1980 Alaska National Interest Lands
Conservation Act
|
Added upwards of 47 million acres to
the National Parks System for protection.
|
1990 Native American Graves Protection
and Repatriation Act
|
Museums must return Indian remains to
the land from which they were taken for reburial.
|
1992 The Vail Agenda
|
A document outlining what the National
Parks want for the future, including how scientific research should be
conducted.
|
1998 National Parks Omnibus Management
Act
|
Called for more management and
accountability for the National Park Service.
|
Information for
this graph is based off of: http://www.nps.gov/history/history/hisnps/NPSHistory/timeline_annotated.htm
(14)
It is beneficial that Yellowstone has strict regulations and
although some may believe that we have the right to practice whatever we want
on the ecosystem, the system is ultimately correct in not allowing visitors to
tamper with the state of the land that Yellowstone encompasses. The current impact of people is a positive
one because people are instilled with the thought to respect the area so that
the land may be preserved for the future generations. Visitors are encouraged to help maintain the pristine
ecosystem of Yellowstone by staying on trails, being mindful of the animals
(and realizing that it is primarily their habitat not ours) and ultimately being aware
and vigilant of what needs to occur in order to maintain the ecosystem (11). For
the future, it would be recommended to continue on the path that we are on now,
and possibly introduce new ideas to cut pollution (a harmful element that
affects nearly every ecosystem). One
place that introduced a new type of transportation to and within their park is
Zion (12). It is a fact that Yellowstone
is a long drive away from any major city and many people drive their gasoline
powered cars to and from Yellowstone. For
the future, Yellowstone may want to implement a shuttle service to take people
to and from parking and lodges to the park itself. This would reduce the amount of air pollution
that is placed in the surrounding area. Yellowstone is indeed on the right track right
now, given that they do have buses that offer tourists full day tours along
with access around the park for $20 (13).
Overall, the land of Yellowstone will
continue to have a bright and untouched future if the community surrounding it
remain to follow the guidelines of the National Park Service and continue to
respect the land. People must remain vigilant of the protections and rules placed
to keep Yellowstone a serene environment, and by doing so, Yellowstone will be
around for generations to love.
