DOINews: NPS: Nine Parks Join Clean Cities Coalition

	A National Park Service ranger talks to visitors at a recharging station at Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Association. Photo by NPS.

As part of the ongoing partnership and efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and petroleum fuel use, the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Park Service have announced the addition of nine new parks to the Clean Cities National Parks Initiative.

Participating parks work with local Clean Cities coalitions to improve sustainable operations and implement GHG and fuel reduction projects, including adopting alternative fuel vehicles and lawnmowers, installing plug-in electric vehicle chargers, implementing sustainable driving practices, and sharing the benefits of these actions with communities, partners and visitors.

• Acadia National Park (Maine) – Working with Maine Clean Communities, the park will replace 10 existing vehicles with eight new alternative and fuel-efficient vehicles (two hybrid electric vehicles, two propane vans, and four low-speed electric vehicles). The park will also install two electric vehicle charging stations for public and park vehicle use.

• Catoctin Mountain Park (Maryland) – Working with the State of Maryland Clean Cities, the park will replace two conventional vehicles with plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and install three electric vehicle charging stations for park fleet and public use. The park will also replace gasoline lawnmowers with four propane mowers and share their use with a nearby military base.

• Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument (Colorado) – Collaborating with Southern Colorado Clean Cities, the park will replace two gasoline vehicles with two all-electric low-speed vehicles, install an electric vehicle charging station, and deploy an all-electric utility vehicle.

• Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Tennessee) – Working with the East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition and the Land of Sky Clean Vehicles Coalition, the park will replace three gasoline pickup trucks with three all-electric work trucks, convert five gasoline mowers to operate on propane, install a propane fueling station for park use, and install four public electric vehicle charging stations. The park plans to install two DC fast-charging stations that charge an all-electric vehicle in approximately 30 minutes and two Level 2stations that charge an all-electric vehicle in four to six hours.

• Nicodemus National Historic Site (Kansas) – Working with Kansas City Regional Clean Cities, the park will replace a gasoline mower with a propane mower.

• Pea Ridge National Military Park (Arkansas) – Working with Arkansas Clean Cities, the park will replace a gasoline pickup truck with a propane truck. The park is also developing a Green Team to educate staff, visitors, and students on sustainability and conservation.

• Petroglyph National Monument (New Mexico) – Working with the Land of Enchantment Clean Cities coalition, the park will replace three gasoline vehicles with an all-electric, plug-in hybrid electric, and hybrid electric vehicle. The park will also install two electric vehicle-charging stations, with one available for public use.

• Scotts Bluff National Monument (Nebraska) – The park will incorporate an all-electric, multi-passenger low-speed vehicle for more sustainable, cleaner transport to the overlook at the top of Scotts Bluff.

• Zion National Park (Utah) – Collaborating with Utah Clean Cities, the park will replace three gasoline-powered vehicles with all-electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and install 10 electric vehicle charging stations, five of which will be available for public use.

In addition to improving the parks' fleets, the planned projects will showcase alternative fuels, advanced technology vehicles, and inform visitors and neighbors about the benefits of idle reduction, fuel economy, and efficient driving habits.

These new projects build upon the success of thirteen projects from the past two years at:

• Grand Teton National Park,
• Mammoth Cave National Park,
• Yellowstone National Park,
• Shenandoah National Park,
• Blue Ridge Parkway,
• San Antonio Missions National Historical Park,
• Golden Gate National Recreation Area,
• Mesa Verde National Park,
• Denali National Park,
• Mississippi National River and Recreation Area,
• National Mall and Memorial Parks,
• Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and
• Rocky Mountain National Park.

This comprehensive set of 22 Clean Cities National Parks Initiative projects are anticipated to save more than 58,000 equivalent gallons of gasoline and about 371 tons of greenhouse gases annually, as well as demonstrate sustainable actions to nearly 50 million visitors each year.

By: Mary Hazell, NPS

April 28, 2014

This story appears in the April 28 edition of InsideNPS.