Grand Teton National Park Open Space Study

Situation Analysis

With the 1996 death of the last surviving heir to certain grazing permits in Grand Teton National Park which were issued when the Park was established in 1950, whether or not to re-issue those Park grazing permits for some undetermined period of time became a nationally significant issue. Without the summer grazing in the Park, there was a threat that ranches holding those grazing permits would no longer be economically viable operations, and would be subdivided into residential areas. Subdivision would irretrievably destroy the open spaces and pastoral character adjacent and important to the Park.

Senator Craig Thomas (R-WY) and Representative Barbara Cubin (R-WY) introduced legislation that became Public Law 105-81 (cite), mandating the Secretary of the Interior to assess and report to Congress the significance to the purpose and character of the Park of "the ranching use and pastoral character of the land" on those adjacent ranches, and to recommend "a variety of economically feasible and viable tools and techniques to retain the pastoral qualities of that land."

P.L. 105-81 directed the Secretary of the Interior to "seek participation from the Governor of the State of Wyoming, the Teton County Commissioners, the Secretary of Agriculture, affected landowners and other interested members of the public."

Objectives

Recognizing the complexity of the issues and the variety of divergent viewpoints that needed to be considered, the National Park Service (NPS) chose a collaborative, facilitated study approach with a Work Group of 15 people. The park and stakeholders selected Sara Flitner to facilitate meetings and design a process. Sara worked with a team of professionals with UW’s Institute for the Environment and Natural Resources throughout the study.

Specific objectives for Flitner included:

• Identify the interests of the people, agencies and organizations concerned;
• Provide a forum for interested people to identify specific issues they felt needed to be addressed by the study;
• If collaboration seemed realistic, design a process to encourage collaboration opportunities;
• Manage the group dynamics and facilitation process throughout the lifespan of the Work Group and;
• Assist in the preparation of Congressional report citing recommendations of the Group.

Tactics

• Flitner conducted interviews with nearly 75 interested stakeholders to identify the range of issues.
• Flitner provided written reports to the Park Service identifying the issues and outlining ways to proceed towards a set of options based on reliable, accurate, and unbiased information for resolution of issues regarding grazing on GTNP and preservation of open space. The makeup of the group was critical in the process approach, and Flitner worked to ensure that all parties represented the range of interests outlined in the situation assessment.
• Flitner met with the Work Group monthly to address data gaps and encourage flexibility during the trust building phase, and used Work Group expertise to inform the process, as well. Throughout the process, Flitner concentrated on areas of agreement to solidify relationships and come to concrete recommendations.
• Sara assisted the Work Group in identifying the specific scope of work and goals for the study, and then worked toward recommendations for Congressional review.

Results

The Work Group reached consensus that protecting the open spaces on those ranches holding livestock grazing permits in the Park is still important — to the Park, to area residents, and to the national public. A majority of the group, over the course of its three-year process, agreed that preserving ranching use on those adjacent lands is the most effective means of protecting the open space and pastoral character of the area.

In general, all people interviewed expressed appreciation and a heightened level of understanding around different perspectives because of the open approach utilized by Flitner and IENR. After three years of facilitated meetings, data gathering, evaluation of impacts and outcomes of potential recommendations, the Work Group reached agreement on the importance of open space to Wyoming communities, and the need to protect it. Through their continued disagreement about grazing in a national park, they were able to recommend several actions by Congress, such as modified tax laws and increased authority for NPS to acquire easements on sensitive lands. The final result was a set of six specific recommendations for Congress, sent forward in by consensus agreement on behalf of the Grand Teton National Park Open Space Work Group.