An aviation company that offers helicopter tours of central Oregon wants to add Crater Lake National Park to its flight plans, but opposition to the proposal is mounting.
The proposal by Leading Edge Aviation to offer tours that basically would have helicopters fly 1,500 feet above the park's Rim Road has been criticized by U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, who pressed Jon Jarvis, the nominee for National Park Service director, to oppose the company's request. "Suffice it to say, Oregonians are just up in arms about the prospect," the Oregon Democrat told Mr. Jarvis during his confirmation hearing on Tuesday.
Mr. Jarvis was noncommittal in his response, as is the nature of nominees at their confirmation hearings these days.
"I can't predict the final outcome on this, but I do believe it would be our responsibility to ensure that the visitor experience and ultimate quiet that you find at Crater Lake is preserved," said Mr. Jarvis.
Also opposed to the overflights, which reportedly could number as many as 300 per year, is the National Parks Conservation Association, which sees them as a noisy intrusion upon Crater Lake.
“At a minimum, Crater Lake could have an increase in helicopter motor noise in the park, and there are a good number of people who would have a problem with that," said the NPCA's Sean Smith, who added there are safety concerns as well.
Back in September 1995 a helicopter crashed into Crater Lake and sank to the bottom, where it remains today. Two men were killed in the crash, and their remains were never recovered.
While Crater Lake has no officially designated wilderness that possibly could be impaired by helicopter overflights, Mr. Smith said that, “For all intents and purposes it (the park) almost is a de facto wilderness, except for the road that goes through the center. A good portion of the park is not accessible by roads."
Dimming the prospects for a somewhat immediate decision on the aviation company's request is the fact that the Federal Aviation Administration has a backlog of more than 80 National Park System units where air-tour management plans need to be adopted before it can consider this request. Adding an air of confusion to the matter is the dispute between the FAA and the National Park Service over which agency has jurisdiction when it comes to park overflights.
On Tuesday there was a meeting between FAA and NPS representatives in Arizona to discuss air tours over Grand Canyon National Park. Exactly how many air tours over the Grand Canyon there are every year is a matter of dispute, as the FAA logged 56,000 last year while the Park Service recorded about 43,000, according to a story in the Arizona Daily Sun.
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Comments
No! Helicopter noise can be very loud if directly under it. The last think our family wanted to see is a chopper overhead when we had just hiked to the top of Wizard Island.
1500 feet above the rim road is about the same amount as the top of nearby Mt. Scott is above the rim road. When we got there, we wanted to see the view of the state quarter, not a helicopter at our eye level.
Crater Lake has the clearest water in the world. I am sure flyovers will do nothing to preserve that status.
More like $1.11
Xanterra: the private sector at work. If it were up to Libertarians there would either be 5000 tour operators at Crater Lake or it would be a private reserve for the hyper-rich. But being the "best idea America ever had" it naturally follows that Libertarians don't like parks.
I suppose I can quit reading these threads since the majority of them end up as soapboxes for proselytizers of the demonstrably false Libertarian quasi-religion. Whether it's the fault of the True BeLIEvers or of the moderators (who should know by now that said True Believers have no self-control) I won't presume to say. Just had to get it off my chest.
Frank and Anonymous,
Did you guys miss the memo on condescension?
Beyond that, Frank, I'd disagree with your perception of Xanterra as a government-granted monopoly. As your own source notes, such a monopoly is created when "a government grants exclusive privilege to a private individual or firm to be the sole provider of a good or service; potential competitors are excluded from the market by law, regulation, or other mechanisms of government enforcement.(my emphasis)."
As the recent post out of Bryce Canyon clearly illustrates, concession contracts are put up for competitive bid. In that most recent case, Xanterra lost its contract to Forever Resorts, a development that runs counter to your contention.
This dosen't have much to due with the terrible idea of scenic flights at any Park, but I have to agree with Frank C. about monopoly concessions. In addition to the tiny fees paid to the government, often the facilities are property of the NPS, which picks up most of the maintenance tab. The infrequent renewals tend to breed overly cosy concession managers and Park managers, a very powerful bloc in planning & policy affecting both the visitor experience and the economy of rural gateway communities.
A couple examples from Mount Rainier: The Paradise mass transit system leaves from one concessionaire and delivers you to another, while bypassing most local businesses. Clients of lodging and climbing concessions had access during the six-month 'flood' closure of 2007, while the public was totally excluded, even from hiking across the boundary.
The point here is the sky above Crater Lake NP is a natural resource needing vigorous protection from development and should not simply be treated as a medium ("airspace") for traveling from point A to point B. The enjoyment of a few people should not be allowed to impact the enjoyment of thousands of other people. Yes, Crater Lake NP has been developed (as I'm glad Frank pointed out above), but, that shouldn't stop us from trying to minimize continued impacts to the park's natural resources. For historical background on NPS management of the parks, I would suggest people read Richard Sellar's book, Preserving Nature in the National Parks.
These proposed helicopter tours should not be allowed in Crater Lake National Park. Thanks for the posting Kurt.
rob
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Executive Director,
Crater Lake Institute
www.craterlakeinstitute.com
Robert Mutch Photography