An $11 billion maintenance backlog has National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis proposing “an unprecedented level of corporate donations” to the national parks, according to the Washington Post. In return for their money, companies would get an unprecedented amount of exposure in those parks.
So does this mean that you could soon visit Coors Rocky Mountain National Park?
No. Under the current proposal, corporate logos and naming rights would be limited to park facilities like visitor centers and to things like educational and youth programs.
An auditorium at Yosemite National Park, for example, could be named after Coke. Naming rights to roads are not up for grabs, but visitors could tour Bryce Canyon in a bus wrapped in the Michelin Man.
Critics are not happy.
“You could use Old Faithful to pitch Viagra,” Jeff Ruch, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, a group opposed to the change, told the Post. “Or the Lincoln Memorial to plug hemorrhoid cream. Or Victoria’s Secret to plug the Statue of Liberty. … Every developed area in a park could become a venue for product placement.”
No word on a date when such corporate sponsors may be available. We’ll keep you posted.
