46    IMPLEMENTING AN ENVIRONMENTAL
MANAGEMENT PROGRAM:
WHOSE DECISION IS IT? THE NATIONAL PARK
SERVICE/ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
PARTNERSHIP PROJECT
Marie Bushway Zanowick
EPA Region VIII Office of Pollution Prevention
999 18th Street, Suite 500
Denver, Colorado 80202
Michael Schene
NPS Intermountain Region
Rocky Mountain and Colorado Plateau Support Office
12795 West Alameda Parkway
Denver, Colorado 80225
ABSTRACT
The mission of the National Park Service, Intermountain Regional (IMR) is to promote sustainable park environments. This involves blending environmental preservation with visitor services and uses. In order to support this mission, the Intermountain Region, Rocky Mountain and
Colorado Plateau System Support Office is committed to the goal of empowering parks to develop and implement an effective environmental management program that will meet the goals
outlined in their initiative. Park Environments 2000: Investing in Safe, Unimpaired Park Environments. The strategy of the Park Environments 2000 Initiative is to create a coalition of System Support office, NPS Headquarters and park operations to protect and repair environmental
damage from human use through development and implementation of an integrated environmental management program within each park that centers around sustainable development.
In order to implement this strategy of developing sustainable parks, the NPS/EPA Partnership
Project has focused its efforts on incorporating pollution prevention concepts into park practices.
To achieve these goals, the NPS IMR looked for support and expertise from the Environmental
Protection Agency Region VIII because of their commitment to a similar mission: "To restore
and protect the ecological integrity of the Rocky Mountains and the plains and the health of their
inhabitants."
The partnership was formalized through a federal Interagency Agreement (IAG) between EPA
Region VIII and the NPS IMR. Under this agreement. NPS provides financial and management
support to the project and coordinates activities with the cluster parks. The EPA provides technical expertise in pollution prevention and regulatory compliance and oversees the field work for
pollution prevention assessments of the parks.
This project was underway during a structural reorganization of the National Park Service.
Questions concerning the role of the NPS central office in environmental decision making and
how to empower and support environmental managers at the local park level were addressed.
The partnership between the NPS IMR and EPA Region VIII has resulted in quantifiable environmental results that support the goals of both agencies. The cost savings to the Park Service to
date is estimated at over $500,000. EPA Region VIII has been able to gain valuable field experience and insight by working directly with a regulatory "customer."
52nd Purdue Industrial Waste Conference Proceedings. 1997. Ann Arbor Press. Chelsea, Michigan 48118. Printed in
U.S.A.
459