Group critical of Lake Mead funding cuts

A statewide environmental group says Lake Mead National Recreation Area is getting shortchanged in the proposed National Park Service budget.

About $169,000 would be cut even though more people are visiting the park, where entrance fees are charged.

"Last year, 7.6 million visitors poured into Lake Mead to boat and fish on the lake and camp and hike the surrounding desert," said Leah Yudin, of the group, Environment Nevada.

"Yet just as its popularity grows, Lake Mead is under threat from underfunding."

The citizen-based advocacy group, an affiliate of the national organization Environment America, released a statement Thursday on Lake Mead and a report on the plight of other national parks facing budget cuts.

With more visitors at lakes Mead and Mohave -- 66,826 more last year than in 2008 -- budget cuts will make it harder for park stewards to keep up with usage, Yudin said.

National Park Service spokesman Andrew Munoz said $3.6 million was collected from entrance fees but that money can be used only for projects and services that enhance the visitor experience, not staffing.

"We can't use it to pay for rangers or maintenance workers," he said. "We're understaffed by 50 percent to run a park of this size."

The recreation area's operating budget for the 2010 fiscal year was $18.3 million.

With much of the fee money gobbled up to improve roads and keep launch ramps in check with Lake Mead's declining water level, the National Park Service is considering a proposal to increase the fee to $10 in January.

Currently, entrance fees are $5 per vehicle for a five-day visit. The $10 fee would cover a vehicle entering and exiting the park for seven days.

In the group's report, visitor numbers last year increased nearly 23 percent at Great Basin National Park in light of an almost 1 percent budget cut proposed for 2011.

Contact reporter Keith Rogers at krogers@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0308.