This week’s topic of discussion: Yosemite National Park, located in the lovely state of California. Yosemite was first protected under United States law in 1864, surely classifying it as a historical land. That being said, the National Park that is known for its beautiful waterfalls has seen over the years that there has been an increase in commercialization. And this doesn’t just go for Yosemite, many parks are experiencing this, but I want to highlight these problems facing Yosemite National Park. In an article from The New York Times, people are starting to fear that the parks are being “loved” and visited and admired to the point where it is actually destroying them.
In Yosemite, one of the problems that has been present for a while is the increased amount of cars going through the park. With increased flow of cars to and from and around the park’s grounds, the roads and pathways have deteriorated and above all, the increased flow of cars results in increased pollution. Pollution is obviously undesirable everywhere, however, in a national park that was created centuries ago and holds ample historical importance, it is really crucial that pollution be limited. Yosemite cannot continue to thrive for another several centuries if it is experiencing damaging rates of pollution thanks to car exhaust.
And it’s absolutely awesome that there are so many people entering the parks and experiencing and admiring their beauty, however, it’s gotten to the point where Yosemite has started to encourage and even go to the extreme of enforcing that people park their cars outside the park and instead, are shuttled into the park. This way, fewer vehicles are wreaking havoc on the land. Less common, however still relevant–parks have even started to limit how many people enter per day, in order to preserve the natural state of the parks. It’s great that the parks systems are being so proactive and working to preserve the lands, however this is a bummer for –people are going to be denied entrance because the parks are being loved THAT much. I wonder if Teddy Roosevelt could have predicted the success and popularity of the National Parks when he decided to take on the task of protecting lands. But with the passing of time, people have started to try and change the culture of the National Parks in a way that probably would not be the most pleasing for our former conservationist president.
Fast forward to 2018, over a century after Teddy Roosevelt started to take on the fate of the National Parks, and we have commercialism starting to emerge on and around these lands. A recent issue that has sparked controversy is the decision for Starbucks to add a location on the very grounds of Yosemite National Park.
From what this article has highlighted, it appears as though there is already a food court in Yosemite National Park. That being said, it is apparently composed of big corporate companies already that have contracts with the National Park Service. This is rather strange then, if these chains are already occupying a slot at the Yosemite National Park food court, what is prompting people to express dislike towards the addition of Starbucks?
If you dive deeper into the article, this question I have posed is answered to an extent. The reason that people are wary of adding a Starbucks is because it does not blend in to the culture and atmosphere of the Yosemite. Meanwhile, other chains have done a good job blending in and adapting to their environment, whether that be through decor that is woodsy, menus that are rustic, or having meats such as elk on the menu.
And then we have Starbucks. Frappuccinos, croissants, and cake pops. I don’t know about you, but that does not scream “this fits right in with Yosemite’s ‘vibe'”. Which is why there is a petition with over 11,000 people signing it to try and stall or stop the Starbucks attempt altogether.
People from Aramark, the company that runs Starbucks, gave their input on the situation, surely showing that all they were concerned about was the growth of their business, not the preservation of rich history of such a beautiful place. One spokesperson from Aramark basically downplayed the Starbucks, saying that there wouldn’t be neon signs and it wouldn’t even look like the traditional Starbucks.
But that isn’t the point. The point is that corporations are trying to wedge their way into land and a place that should be left virtually untouched. So that leaves us with the question, should more people step in to try and solve this problem of commercialization, or is it inevitable that corporations will take over everything and suddenly, a place that people went to in order to admire the beauty of our nation will just be a money making pit?
This is definitely worth our time to worry about, it’s not going to just go away. And if something isn’t done, who knows how long it will be until Yosemite and all the other National Parks are taken over by big businesses? Sounds like a real life Jurassic World. I don’t know about you, but that is not something I ever want to experience.
I really love this piece and the detail to which you outline the major issues in how Yosemite is currently run, and a fear for the future in possible turns for the worst. I have never been to a national park, only a few state parks, but you definitely helped me see issues that could possibly take over the entire national park system in the United States. Reading certain sections of this piece made me really want to visit Yosemite National Park this summer or a summer soon after for its beauty and amazing spectacles throughout, but I don’t know if the fact that Starbucks (representing a very slippery slope) opening on its grounds will help preserve its beauty and act as an escape from the ultra-materialistic culture in which we currently live. I’d definitely love to at least see first-hand how this Starbucks and the entrance limit affects the experience of being at Yosemite for a day.
Having been to Yosemite myself within the last two years, I can agree with you in regards to park popularity. I went to the park two summers ago in July and there was an incredible amount of people there. All shuttles in the park were full and there were tons of visitors around the waterfalls. As such, the number of cars was also quite high. I did notice, however, that the park was using buses that were less polluting, be it from hybrid buses or natural gas buses. Besides all of this, I found that companies present in the park were not too intrusive. Yes, there is the food court, but as a whole, the park was able to retain its natural look and feel. Now, if the number of stores and restaurants continues to grow, that would become problematic. As such, it would be best if additions were not done.