Greenest Park Initiative

Since its inception as the world's first national park in 1872, Yellowstone has been a leader in natural and cultural resource management. But the fact is Yellowstone uses an enormous quantity of fossil fuel and treated water, and generates a tremendous amount of solid waste in serving three million annual visitors. So what is a national park to do?

The Greening of Yellowstone

The Greenest Park Initiative is a multi-year action plan to help Yellowstone further reduce its ecological footprint, increase operational efficiency, and better preserve Park resources for future generations.

The Yellowstone Park Foundation, as the official fundraising partner of Yellowstone National Park, committed to establishing the Greenest Park Initiative and raising $5 million to fund multiple projects in six key areas. Click on one of the areas below to read more.

Greenest Park Goals

Yellowstone National Park has set ambitious environmental sustainability goals for its operations. Using 2003 figures as the baseline, Yellowstone aims to achieve the following by 2016 the one hundredth birthday of the National Park Service:

Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30%
Reduce electricity consumption by 15%
Reduce fossil fuel consumption by 18%
Reduce water consumption by 15%
Divert 100% of solid waste from landfills

Greenest Park Partners

The Greenest Park Initiative is a large-scale, public-private partnership that will require the commitment of dedicated partners and corporations, in particular, to be successful.

Already, several major corporations have stepped forward to support projects by donating goods, services, expertise, and cash.

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