A craft beer brewery in the shadow of Grand Teton National Park is lending its support to the Snake River Gateways campaign launched by the Grand Teton National Park Foundation.
The Snake River Gateways campaign is a $6.5 million public-private partnership project between Grand Teton National Park and the Foundation that is renewing access points and conserving resources along the river in Grand Teton.
The Snake River Headwaters Legacy Act was passed by Congress in 2009 and brought the Wild and Scenic Designation to over 330 miles of river, including the stretch lying within the boundaries of Grand Teton National Park.
For every Snake River Brewing Company Pale Ale purchased, a portion of proceeds will directly support the Snake River Gateways campaign. Project work began this spring at Pacific Creek and will continue in future years at Jackson Lake Dam and Moose Landing. Plans for all three locations are guided by the Wild and Scenic Snake River Management Plan and reflect the designation’s standard for these rivers of distinction, including preservation of free-flowing conditions and water quality, as well as universal access and opportunities to connect with the river.
Snake River Gateways: Connecting people and the river from GTNP Foundation on Vimeo.
This partnership marks the second time SRB has supported the Foundation on a major effort in Grand Teton. Proceeds form their Jenny Lake Lager beer previously provided funding for trail improvements at Jenny Lake—the park’s most popular destination.
Snake River Brewing Pale Ale/GTNPF
Sales from SRB’s Snake River Pale Ale will help the Foundation spread the word about the project to new audiences within the community and region. SRB owner, Ted Staryk, and his family share a deep appreciation for Grand Teton and the Wild and Scenic Snake River. Staryk saw the opportunity to use sales from the Snake River Pale Ale as a way to give back and celebrate a place his family loves.
"My family and I have been coming to Jackson for a long time—long before we decided to move here permanently—and Grand Teton National Park has always been a special place for us. We wanted to find a way to give back to the park. After the success we had with Jenny Lake Lager supporting the Jenny Lake renewal project, the Snake River Gateways campaign offered another opportunity to partner with the Foundation. We know proceeds from Snake River Pale Ale are benefiting Grand Teton, ensuring it will be something future generations will be able to enjoy," Staryk said.
“We are honored to yet again have the Brew Pub’s incredible support of a major campaign in Grand Teton,” Foundation President Leslie Mattson said. “We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with a local business who is passionate about the stewardship of the Snake River and ensuring all visitors have the opportunity to experience it.”
Work is underway at Pacific Creek. Visitors are encouraged to check in at park visitor centers for up-to-date information on closures and site conditions. Visit www.gtnpf.org/SnakeRiver to see project plans and learn more about the effort. Watch the video to learn why this effort is important.
Comments
Yes, this is a laudable project; however, it is more of a visitor amenity and landscaping project. Yes, it will correct some of the environmental impacts of visitor overuse and will encourage a deeper appreciation of the park. But, overall, the project focuses primarily, not entirely, but primarily on what it does for human desires and from the human viewpoint. Yes, it does what the NPS should do and be funded to do, but expands the resources available for it.
Yes, I support this project. However, given that we are already in the sixth major extinction event, I believe we might also think about what should be done and needs to be done, over the longer term, to mitigate the larger environmental damage right at this project's doorstep.
Jackson Lake Dam was built to tower more than sixty feet above the original level of the Snake River at that point. In doing that, the dam drowned more than twelve free-flowing miles of the Snake River and an existing, smaller, natural mountain lake, much like Jenny Lake is today, that was both fed and drained by the Snake River and filled with two increasingly rare subspecies or strains of native cutthroat trout. The construction of the dam also smothered large areas of previously existing forest habitat, including moose habitat; arguably diminished the original lake's suitability for its native trout population; and definitely improved its suitability for the rapaciously predatory nonnative lake trout that were subsequently introduced and now feed on remnant native trout.
Wyoming politicians (yes, that party) have been aggressive in perpetuating their hold on the lake. They arranged for the dam to continue being controlled for the benefit of irrigators and excluded from full control as part of the park. Ignoring the fact that those more than twelve originally free-flowing miles of the Snake River are drowned under the dam, more than fifteen miles of the Snake River are not covered by the Snake River Headwaters Legacy Act or Wild and Scenic Designation because of the dam. And, those rapaciously predatory nonnative lake trout in the lake are now effectively under the control of Wyoming state government and the dam now represents a precedent with regard to disregarding conservation biology principles and causing potential problems for native cutthroat trout in other places. Did I mention that numerous engineering studies have predicted that the Jackson Lake Dam is really not built to withstand a credible earthquake in that area?
Many antiquated and environmentally detrimental dams have been removed around the country and the success of the environmental recovery processes following these removals has often been quite spectacular. It's really way past time to quit fooling around, remove Jackson Lake Dam, and truly restore Grand Teton National Park. Just sayin'...