{"id":35031,"date":"2025-01-16T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-16T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/?p=35031"},"modified":"2025-01-22T16:07:39","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T00:07:39","slug":"who-gets-to-run-the-river-tomorrow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/2025\/01\/16\/who-gets-to-run-the-river-tomorrow\/","title":{"rendered":"Who Gets to Run the River Tomorrow?"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you’ve ever taken an economics class, and even if you haven’t, you’ve likely heard the phrase “the Tragedy of the Commons.” <\/em>American ecologist Garrett Hardin popularized said phrase in the 1960s. Hardin used the idea to explore the different incentives embodied in common and private ownership and the risks of overpopulation. In his example, a \u201ccommon\u201d or community pasture illustrated how too many people using a shared and finite resource, would, eventually, destroy said resource. But anything shared, including rivers, can complete the analogy. And river runners, maybe more than most, understand the concept.<\/p>\n

We all want to run the same rivers, but we know we can\u2019t\u2014at least not at the same time. For one thing, unlimited use would <\/em>harm the river.\u00a0And for another, when we run a river, we like to pretend we are the only people on it. So, as a better-than-nothing solution, the Lottery System<\/a> was developed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou pays your money and you takes your chances.\u201d<\/p>\n

But what happens when \u201cyou pay your money, take your chances, and then are required to pay even more money?\u201d That is the question at the heart of the National Park Service\u2019s Non-Commercial River Permit Cost Recovery Rate Change for 2025.<\/p>\n

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(C) Krystal Wright<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A December 30th press release<\/a> laid out the proposed changes: as of March 1st, 2025, the per-person cost to float between Lee\u2019s Ferry and Diamond Creek would go from $90 to $310<\/strong> and the float between Diamond Creek and Pearce Ferry would go from $0 to $55 per person<\/strong>. The comment period for these proposed changes runs through January 30th, 2025<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

While I encourage you to read the full documents released by the NPS, for the purpose of this article, I\u2019ll summarize. The last increase was 26 years ago, and it turns out things cost more now. Additionally, the NPS doesn\u2019t like that the non-river-using public is now paying some of that cost.<\/p>\n

Needless to say, one predictable thing that happened when the changes were proposed was that a very small corner of the internet devoted to floating through the Grand Canyon became very chatty. While most of the opinions I read skewed against the fee increase, a surprising number were ambivalent or even supportive of the fee hike.<\/p>\n

So how are we to feel about this? And by \u201cwe,\u201d I mean \u201cme.\u201d<\/p>\n