Trump eliminates plastic water bottle ban in National Parks, removes White House bikeshare station

Desdemona Despair

By Lorraine Chow
17 August 2017

(EcoWatch) – President Trump has made sweeping efforts to scrap Obama-era environmental protections, but the current administration’s latest moves are oddly specific.

The National Park Service (NPS) announced Wednesday that it has rescinded the 2011 “Water Bottle Ban” that allowed parks to prohibit the sale of disposable plastic water bottles. That same day, news emerged that the Trump administration removed a nine-slot Capital Bikeshare station at the White House that was requested and installed during the Obama years and used by staffers.

The NPS said that the bottled water ban “removed the healthiest beverage choice at a variety of parks while still allowing sales of bottled sweetened drinks.” Revocation of the 2011 memorandum is effective immediately.

“While we will continue to encourage the use of free water bottle filling stations as appropriate, ultimately it should be up to our visitors to decide how best to keep themselves and their families hydrated during a visit to a national park, particularly during hot summer visitation periods,” acting NPS director Michael T. Reynolds explained.

According to the Wilderness Society, 23 national parks had adopted the policy, including Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and Zion National Park. The group said the Water Bottle Ban—an effort under President Obama’s Green Parks Plan to promote the use of tap water and refillable bottles on federal lands—helped parks “simultaneously reduce park waste and carbon emissions.”

But as the San Francisco Chronicle reported, the water bottle ban was opposed by the beverage industry that had long lobbied to change the policy.

Watchdog groups criticized the initiative. “Just as we’ve seen across the board with the Trump administration, this is an example of the industry working behind the scenes to protect its profits,” Lauren DeRusha Florez, associate campaign director at Corporate Accountability International, told the Chronicle. “Plastic water bottles have a tremendous environmental impact.” [more]

Trump Eliminates Plastic Water Bottle Ban in National Parks, Removes White House Bikeshare Station

WASHINGTON, 16 August 2017 (NPS) – In its commitment to providing a safe and world-class visitor experience, the National Park Service is discontinuing Policy Memorandum 11-03, commonly referred to as the “Water Bottle Ban.”

The 2011 policy, which encouraged national parks to eliminate the sale of disposable water bottles, has been rescinded to expand hydration options for recreationalists, hikers, and other visitors to national parks. The ban removed the healthiest beverage choice at a variety of parks while still allowing sales of bottled sweetened drinks. The change in policy comes after a review of the policy’s aims and impact in close consultation with Department of the Interior leadership.

“While we will continue to encourage the use of free water bottle filling stations as appropriate, ultimately it should be up to our visitors to decide how best to keep themselves and their families hydrated during a visit to a national park, particularly during hot summer visitation periods,” said Acting National Park Service Director Michael T. Reynolds.

Currently only 23 of the 417 National Park Service sites have implemented the policy. The revocation of the memorandum, which was put in place on December 14, 2011, is effective immediately. Parks will continue to promote the recycling of disposable plastic water bottles and many parks have already worked with partners to provide free potable water in bottle filling stations located at visitor centers and near trailheads.

National Park Service Ends Effort to Eliminate Sale of Disposable Water Bottles