Mt. Rainier Parks & Grand Canyon Parks chief accused of conflict of interest (concessionaires)

[Laluchacontinua]

Earlier this month, the Seattle Times reported a disturbing story about David Uberuaga, the new Superintendent of Grand Canyon National Park, one of the crown jewels of the national park system. It has not gotten the attention it deserved. The gist of the story is that in his previous posting as Superintendent of Mt. Rainier National Park, Uberuaga –

• Sold his home for more than three-times its assessed value to the owner of the multi-million dollar concessionaire which had a monopoly on the park’s climbing guide business;

• Never recused himself from dealing with the company even while its owner was paying Uberuaga $425,000 for his bungalow – a price called “crazy high” by investigators; and

• Failed to disclose the transaction on conflict-of-interest forms.

After the Justice Department declined prosecution in 2010, National Park Director Jon Jarvis, a previous Mt. Rainier superintendent who helped Uberuaga ascend the NPS career letter, issued his protégé a reprimand. Shortly thereafter, Uberuaga was promoted to take over Grand Canyon, the concessionaire cash cow of the system. What the Seattle Times did not report was that –

• Jarvis intervened in the selection process, after another candidate was told by the Regional Director the job was his. Jarvis made sure Uberuaga got the job;

• Jarvis’ older brother Destry is a consultant to a major Grand Canyon concessionaire, the motorized rafters – an area in which Director Jarvis has not recused himself; and

• Director Jarvis is working to set up a billion dollar endowment, largely from corporate donors, to be distributed at his discretion.

Jon Jarvis refused interview requests from the Seattle Times and instead sent an agency flack to issue the following statement with not only a straight face but with a tiny hint of indignation:

“Even the appearance of a conflict of interest is unacceptable” in NPS.

What a crock. The Director of the Park Service is awash in both the appearance and the actuality of conflicts – and he knows it.

PEER does not usually track this type of petty corruption but under Jarvis, corporate and political pandering is coming at the expense of park resources. Two recent examples are illegally allowing swamp buggies into the wild Addition lands of Big Cypress National Preserve and stifling objections to the most destructive possible route for a mega-transmission corridor across Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail.

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/823/t/0/blastContent.jsp?email_blast_KEY=1229321

[joeybee12]

1. Appointed by Obama and confirmed by the Senate...knr

[Ian David]

2. This dude have anything to do with the Uranium mining deal? n/t

[msongs]

3. how bout closing the concessions completely nt