Sustainability in the Park

Electric vehicle charging equipment is available at several parking areas at Catoctin Mountain Park.

NPS Photo

 

Since its creation in 1916, the National Park Service (NPS) has been a world leader in protecting natural and cultural resources. The NPS has preserved many of the country’s greatest treasures and in the process has become a model for resource management. Through the implementation of the Green Parks Plan, the Service strives to extend that leadership to the sustainable management of our facilities and operations in order to fully carry out the mission of environmental stewardship. Working towards the vision of net zero waste, energy, and water usage, Catoctin Mountain Park is making changes to lessen our impact of our operation on the environment.

 

Climate Friendly Parks

Catoctin Mountain Park joined the Climate Friendly Parks Program in 2013 with the goal of reducing the park’s greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to a changing climate. Through the program, we have conducted annual inventories of emissions in the park and developed strategies to ensure our operations become more sustainable.

 

Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

Visitors are able to charge their vehicles at three stations throughout the park, conveniently located at major trailheads. The charging equipment was provided through a grant from the Department of Energy to encourage the public’s use of electric vehicles, a part of the Clean Cities program.

The electricity has been provided thanks to a grant from the Geller Family Foundation in partnership with Adopt-A-Charger. Simply plug your vehicle in, and begin charging!

 

Electric vehicle charging stations can be found at Camp Round Meadow, the Visitor Center, and Park Headquarters.

 

Water bottle refilling stations are available at several facilities throughout the park, including at the Visitor Center.

Energy Efficient Facilities

Office buildings and facilities are a significant source of resource consumption in the United States. This includes water and emissions sources like electricity, propane, wood for heat, heating oil, cleaning agents, and solvents. Here in the park, we have implemented several strategies to reduce the footprint of daily park operations. Some of the green changes include:

• Placing water bottle refill stations throughout the park
• Installing new energy efficient heating and cooling systems
• Purchase of electric and hybrid electric vehicles for our fleet
• Installing low-flow toilets in park restrooms and fitting older sinks with low-flow aerators
• Installing high efficiency LED lighting and motion sensing switches
• New building insulation and using programmable thermostats
• Installing tankless water heaters in park facilities
• Switching to lower emission propane lawn mowers

Additionally, the Catoctin Mountain Park sustainability committee looks at recycling and resource usage in the park. Their goal is to increase the amount of waste diverted to recycling, by providing employees and visitors with better recycling infrastructure and education.

These changes to our operations not only reduce our impact on the planet, they also save money by reducing our water and electric bills. Calculate your carbon footprint to see where you can save money.

 

What does it mean to be sustainable?

1. Renewable resources The rate of harvest should not exceed the rate the environment can produce the resource.
2. Waste & pollution The rates of waste generation from projects should not impact environmental health, or exceed the capacity of the environment to handle and process the wastes (sustainable waste disposal).