Parks’ Dirty Air Is Costing Millions, Study Finds

The growing problem of dirty air over national parks is disappointing tourists and keeping some away, costing nearby businesses millions of dollars in lost revenue, concludes a study commissioned by several environmental groups.

Pollution from coal-burning power plants, cars and factories often drifts hundreds of miles, causing serious haze in otherwise remote and pristine parks and forest areas, a variety of studies have determined in recent years.

In the East, places like the Great Smoky Mountain and Shendandoah national parks have seen summer-time visibility reduced dramatically because of severe haze caused by man-made pollution from sources miles away. Some parks in the West have seen visibility plummet from 140 miles to 35 miles on some summer days.

The study by Abt Associates Inc., an environmental research firm in Bethesda, Md., sought to examine the economic impact of parks’ dirty air and poor visibility.

The study acknowledges that its findings are “very rough estimates of economic benefit” because it is “difficult” to measure what visibility is worth to the public. Still, the report assumes that cleaner air would bring additional people to the parks--based on the fact that surveys have shown that clean air and unobstructed views are a top priority of park visitors.

“When confronted by poor visibility . . . travelers shorten their stay or go elsewhere,” said the study.

Examining seven national parks with pollution problems, the study estimated that a 25% increase in visitors would translate into an additional $13 million to nearly $300 million in additional economic benefits to local businesses, depending on the park.

“We’ve known for years that hazy skies in our national parks disappoint tourists and local residents alike,” said Angela Ledford of the National Campaign Against Dirty Power, one of the groups that commissioned the study. “Now we know that cleaning up the pollution that causes haze will pump millions into the local and national economies.”

The Environmental Protection Agency last year issued regulations requiring that visibility at 156 national parks be improved by 15% each decade, returning to pristine conditions over a 60-year period. The agency is expected to issue new requirements on pollution controls later this year.

The study examined haze and visitor statistics at Acadia National Park in Maine; Big Bend National Park in Texas; Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona; Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee and North Carolina; Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore in Indiana; Mt. Rainier National Park in Washington; and Shenandoah National Park in Virginia.