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Last summer, the American Recreation Coalition was pushing hard in support of a what was universally denounced as a radical, anti-parks, pro-motorized-wreckreation rewrite of the National Park policies. ARC's intense lobbying caught the attention of the national media including Vanity Fair and the New York Times which, on June 10, editorialized as follows:
[What's most worrying about this last-minute lobbying - besides the fact that recreation seems limited to activities involving an internal combustion engine - is the suggestion, put forward by the American Recreation Coalition, that the Park Service revise the management policy regularly. There is only one reason for a suggestion like that: to give "recreation leaders" a regular chance to pressure the park system for increased motorized vehicle access.]
One might expect that with all of that bad press, ARC's political wings would have been clipped and the threat they pose to the National Park System would be much reduced. Almost nothing could be further from the truth.
In the past 6 months, ARC has re-worked their message and is continuing to push the same basic agenda they have pushed for more than two decades. Whereas their old, classic wise-use, message ran into a massive roadblock, their new healthy-kids message is gaining almost unbelievable traction.
In February, ARC's President, Derrick Crandall, met with President Bush, Interior Secretary Kempthorne and NPS Director Bomar. One month later Crandall and several top-level recreation industry executives met again with Secretary Kempthorne, presumably to follow up on the previous meeting and to nail down loose ends.
Pasted below is a News Release issued today by the ARC and here's an excerpt. If you didn't know what the ARC is, what they seek to accomplish and who they represent, one could almost read this and think that ARC was a friend of the parks. Nothing, absolutely nothing at all, could be further from the truth.
[American Recreation Coalition (ARC) President Derrick Crandall said that ARC will continue to work vigorously with its recreation community partners and the National Park Service to develop strategies for reversing the continuing decline. "The issue isn't numbers of visitors -- it is that the national park system has the potential to provide more Americans with more benefits and more memories while still being protected for future enjoyment," said Crandall.]
We must not transform the parks in an effort to lure additional visitors to
them and create new opportunities for motorized recreation and increased revenue
generation. We must reject the agenda the ARC is pushing.
Scott
--- begin quoted ---
News Releases Posted on Wed,
03/14/2007 - 07:53.
National Park Service 2006 Public Use Statistics
Released - Downward Trend in Recreation Visits Continues
Washington, DC) - The National Park Service (NPS) reports that units of
the National Park System received 272.6 million recreation visits in
2006, representing an overall 0.3% decline, or 0.9 million fewer visits
than in 2005. This continues a downward trend which began after 1999
when visitorship peaked at 287.1 million recreation visits, according
to Tom Wade of the NPS Public Use Statistics Office.
The Alaska Region experienced the sixth year in a row with an increase
in recreation visits (4.5%). The Southeast also saw a modest increase
of 1.5%. The National Capital Region was the only other region showing
an increase in recreation visitorship (2.0%), but the NPS attributes
this to a first-time counting of 2.2 million participants in the Cherry
Blossom Festival.
All of the other regions experienced a decline in recreation visits in
2006. The Midwest led with a 5.0% decline, but the Pacific West Region
had the steepest decline in actual numbers - with a decrease of 1.3
million visits. The Intermountain Region's annual recreation visits
decreased for the eleventh time in the last thirteen years. The
Northeast region shows the smallest variation, with a decline of just
0.2%.
American Recreation Coalition (ARC) President Derrick Crandall said
that ARC will continue to work vigorously with its recreation community
partners and the National Park Service to develop strategies for
reversing the continuing decline. "The issue isn't numbers of visitors
-- it is that the national park system has the potential to provide
more Americans with more benefits and more memories while still being
protected for future enjoyment," said Crandall.
To see the NPS report, "Public Use Statistics - 2006 Regional Report",
click here.
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- Privatization 
