About the Greater Yellowstone Area
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| One of the few truly rural Clean Cities Coalitions, Yellowstone-Teton Clean Energy Coalition encompasses areas of western Wyoming, southwestern Montana, and Eastern Idaho known as the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA). The GYA encompasses more than 10 million acres (34,000 sq miles) and is the last intact, temperate ecosystem in the world. This ecosystem consists of two national parks (Yellowstone and Grand Teton), six National Forests (Targhee, Custer, Shoshone, Gallatin, Bridger/Teton, Deerlodge) and two U.S. Fish and Wildlife sites (Elk Refuge, Red Lakes).
This very diverse region boasts 13,000 ft alpine peaks, the largest high elevation lake in North America, mountain deserts, the highest concentration of geo-thermal features in the world, and is home to the complete array of animal species that were present in pre-historic times. Additionally, there are permittees that operate three major ski resorts, a commercial airport, large concessioner operations, and dozens of tour guides and outfitters that provide visitor services. Collectively, the area accommodates over seven million visitors annually. Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks are Mandatory Class 1 Areas, as defined by the 1977 Clean Air Act. These areas are subject to anti-degradation practices to maintain their status and protect them from impairment created by manmade air pollution. Notably, the GYA achieved a Clean Cities designation in 2002 as the Yellowstone-Teton Clean Energy Coalition, the first and only ecosystem to receive such recognition. | |
Map of the Greater Yellowstone Area |
Yellowstone Thermal Area
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| Any well-marketed deployment of alternative fuels/advanced vehicle technologies in this region will receive extensive public exposure to the millions of annual visitors, residents, and business owners in the various ‘gateway’ cities adjacent to the parks. Tremendous potential exists for collaboration across the region to deploy a variety of alternative fuels and advanced technologies. These will decrease regional consumption of petroleum, improve air quality, create a stronger, more diverse energy portfolio for the region, while setting an example for the nation. The opportunity to successfully display these technologies in use in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks will serve to further promote their use in the surrounding communities of Cody, Jackson, Dubois, West Yellowstone, Gardiner, Bozeman, Livingston, and beyond.
Yellowstone (YELL) and Grand Teton (GRTE), arguably two of the world’s premier National Parks, are the heart of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. According to the National Park Service Public Use Statistics Office the two parks combined last year for over 5.8 million visitors, accounting for nearly 10% of the 62 million total National Park visits in 2009. The high profile and high visitorship of these two parks, along with their existing initiatives targeted to reduce their emissions footprints and petroleum consumption, make them ideal candidates for funding under this program. |
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Yellowstone-Teton Clean Energy Coalition
PO Box 11756 Jackson, WY 83002
307.413.1971
