The National Park Service has denied South Dakota's request for fireworks at Mount Rushmore for the Fourth of July/Kurt Repanshek file
National Park Service officials have again denied a request from South Dakota to allow a fireworks display over Mount Rushmore National Memorial to celebrate the Fourth of July.
While the agency under the Trump administration allowed the display in 2020, the Biden administration turned it down for last year and remained steadfast this year, citing objections from tribes that see the display as posing "an adverse effect to the traditional cultural landscape."
The denial, signed by Mount Rushmore Superintendent Michelle Wheatley, also noted that firework displays can adversely impact the environment, could spark wildfires, interfere with cultural and historical presentations at the memorial for the holiday weekend, affect concessionaire operations, create a public danger due to the gathering of a large group that couldn't safely be evacuated from the memorial in the event of a wildfire, and conflict with a "patriotic Independence Day celebration" the Park Service is planning.
In her letter, the superintendent also noted that a March 2021 wildfire at Mount Rushmore was the largest in the memorial's history and forced a three-day closure of the site.
"Current drought conditions and the 2022 wildfire outlook indicate the fireworks would cause a high likelihood of wildfire ignition," wrote Wheatley in her March 14 letter.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem sued Interior Secretary Deb Haaland after the Park Service turned down her request to resume the fireworks in 2021. While the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to issue a temporary injunction to allow the display, the case remains pending in the court.
A 2016 study by the U.S. Geological Survey concluded that surface and groundwater at Mount Rushmore were probably polluted with a chemical common to rocket fuels and explosives by past fireworks' displays. The environmental assessment prepared for the 2020 event played down the threat of additional perchlorate contamination by noting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had been considering a move to bump up the allowable amount of the chemical in drinking water by more than three times, from 15 microgrms per liter to 56 micrograms per liter.
Perchlorate has been found to interfere with the function of the human thyroid gland.
Aerial fireworks displays took place at the memorial around the 1998-2009 Independence Days. The USGS and National Park Service studied perchlorate and metals associated with fireworks in 106 water and 11 soil samples taken from Mount Rushmore during 2011-2015. Perchlorate concentrations were greatest in samples collected from the northeast side of the memorial, and the scientists found perchlorate in soil where the fireworks were launched and where the debris landed.
That testing found a maximum perchlorate concentration of 54 micrograms per liter measured in a stream sample, and 38 micrograms per liter measured from a groundwater well. In contrast, all groundwater and stream samples collected from sites outside the memorial boundary had perchlorate concentrations less than 0.2 micrograms per liter.
Comments
Working the Independance Day fireworks celebration @ Mt. Rushmore in 2003 was my fav NPS work experience. Let's take each proffered objection in turn:
1. "...tribes that see the display as posing "an adverse effect to the traditional cultural landscape..." - Some tribal members would like to see the monument erased altogether - is this the standard? Do they now have a dispositive say over NPS land mgt? Where is there a balance with what the local towns and other citizens desire?
2. "firework displays can adversely impact the environment, could spark wildfires, interfere with cultural and historical presentations, affect concessionaire operations, ..." - could, might, possible. That's why they had a BLM fire crew on site. The fireworks are the #1 cultural event of the day. The concessionaire's operations are affected by much higher income. I am confident the concessionaire badly wants more major events like this. Totally disengenuous reason.
3. "create a public danger due to the gathering of a large group that couldn't safely be evacuated from the memorial in the event of a wildfire" - does this even warrant a response?
4. "and conflict with a "patriotic Independence Day celebration..." - Ditto
5. "In her letter, the superintendent also noted that a March 2021 wildfire at Mount Rushmore was the largest in the memorial's history and forced a three-day closure of the site." - Irrelevant. There was a fire once upon a time so we should just close down the site instead of properly planning and managing events.
6. "A 2016 study by the U.S. Geological Survey concluded that surface and groundwater at Mount Rushmore were probably polluted with a chemical common to rocket fuels and explosives by past fireworks' displays." - Well is it polluted or not? What does 'probably' mean? It's not a wilderness area. It's a heavy use front country area with national significance.
No balance here whatsoever. High fire danger? Cancel the event. Elevated pollution levels? Limit the fireworks to every couple of years. In 2003 security was through the roof in a post-9/11 world. They made due; they made it happen. Everyone who attended had a spectacular time.
Manage the land, not your careers. This is what bad government looks like.
Amen Loui.
""...tribes that see the display as posing "an adverse effect to the traditional cultural landscape...""
Does anyone remember the 1996 Bear Butte (SD) fire caused by tribal members' illegal camping? Talk about an adverse effect on the cultural landscape!
Or the trashing of the Devils Tower trail with gaudy plastic "prayer flags" left by tribal members? I guess it's okay to adversely affect the cultural landscape if it's tribal.
Thank goodness! Let's not forget that the land Mt Rushmore is on was stolen from the Native Americans. It's bad enough the faces were carved into the side of a perfectly good mountain and are now somehow worshiped as such an amazing travel destination. It's highly likely the locals are NOT the folks outraged by the fact that there will not be fireworks. Sure there are a few who want that for the tourist business reasons, but I'd be willing to bet the average nearby homeowner is perfectly fine with not setting off fireworks in their forested backyard. Let's also not forget that Mt Rushmore is in the middle of a national forest! Tell me what other national forests allow fireworks? I've camped in MANY and have encountered many a "No Fireworks" sign. It makes perfect sense when half of the country goes up in flames each summer due to drought conditions in forests and grasslands. What surprises me the most about people's obsession with fireworks at Mt Rushmore and everywhere else is that so much money is spent on a product from China, made exclusively for blowing up. There is NOTHING to be gained from fireworks. Nothing. Give your money to China so you can see it go up in smoke and when you can't do that, outrage! It's more than a little crazy. Now...on the flip side, since Mt Rushmore is here to stay, and we have a governor who is obsessed with the lack of fireworks, why not work out a modern and safe way to patriotically show off the faces? If Disney parks have reduced their fireworks consumption and replaced them with more innovative light displays, why couldn't something like this be accomplished at Mt Rushmore as well? Disney projects imagery and storytelling on the castle and can change it up for different times of the year...why not invest in somethin similar for Mt Rushmore? The evening lighting ceremonies are woefully aweful...something like this could be used every night as a way to tell the stories of presidents or whatever else, saving the bigger patriotic events for the days surrounding the 4th.
You wrote a chapter, but it's not that deep. It's just a few minutes of fireworks. Who cares. You can literally watch them anywhere and you're flipping out because they won't set them off in one location in the middle of a forest? Did you not learn anything about conservation in your NPS work experience?
So now the Black Hills are now occupied by "whites". I can see where this is going.
y_p_w - Where is it going? I think the point has already arrived quite well.
You mean the NPS is actually going to work towards the mission of the agency to "preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations"?! And not create a political spectacle out of it?!
This is such a non-issue on the surface level if you weigh the pros/cons of the fireworks and follow the science. But the usual commenters have nothing better to do with their lives than have bad faith arguments on the internet. Very simple, symbol-minded individuals as well. "No big, bright, colorful sky booms to celebrate 'Murica day? Hurr durr, muh liberties! Wah!"
You'd rather taxpayer dollars be wasted on fireworks and fire crews on standby, plus whatever the costs are associated with putting out fires and restoring an area if a fire breaks out? I'm not even going to comment on the need to weigh cultural impacts of the event, because there's only one culture you care about. But the costs of possible destruction over "just a few minutes of fireworks" would probably exceed the cost of fireworks significantly. What happened to fiscal responsibility? The parks aren't amusement parks.
There's always that one crowd whining about government spending and wasted taxpayer dollars, but when it comes to huge, grandstanding events that aren't even productive and cost-effective they're foaming at the mouth. Their hypocrisy is overflowing. Just admit it, you don't care about science, the environment and you don't care about any cultures other than "white, American" culture.
Go cry about it, snowflakes. You're very special and everyone obviously wants to hear what's upsetting you all the time.