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MARCH 22, 2001

Indicating she may overturn or change the controversial regulations, Secretary of Interior Gale Norton on Wednesday debated the fairness of elminating snowmobiles from the nation's national parks.

After she made a speech to the National Parks Conservation Association in Washington, DC, yesterday, a member asked her about the issue. Regulations finalized by the Clinton adminstration ban snowmobiles from most national parks and phase them out by 2003-2004 in Grand Teton and Yellowstone.

Norton said she herself has been annoyed by the noise of snowmobiles. But she also said there are ways to mitigate their potential damage to the environment.

Another member asked Norton about President Bush's promise to spend $5 billion over five years to address the maintenance backlog at national parks. She said the funds were not all "new money" and that Bush's pledge was really more about ensuring existing and future budgets funnel money to fix and repair the parks

Get Norton's Speech:
Remarks Prepared for Delivery by Gale Norton, Secretary of the Interior to the National Parks Conservation Association (DOI 3/21)

Get the Story:
Norton restarts blizzard of debate over snowmobiles in Yellowstone (The Denver Post 3/22)

Related Stories:
State seeks snowmobile intervention (3/21)