NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

To:        All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:      Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:  Tuesday, November 18, 1997

Broadcast: By 1000 ET

INCIDENTS

97-620 - Cuyahoga Valley NRA (OH) - Follow-up on Marijuana Seizure and Arrest

R.S., 53, was convicted of possession of a controlled substance in
federal court in October.  R.S. was fined, placed on a year's probation,
and ordered to pay $2,000 to the park in restitution for the cost of the
investigation.  On September 19th, rangers videotaped R.S. removing
marijuana plants from a cultivation site in the park, then observed him
hanging a dozen plants out to dry on a laundry line in his back yard. 
Another dozen plants, over a half pound of processed marijuana, valium
capsules, scales and paraphernalia were seized during the subsequent search
of R.S.'s residence.  [Mosie Maxey, DR, CUVA, 11/8]

97-704 - Mount Rainier NP (WA) - Follow-up on Search

The search for 27-year-old C.H., missing in the park since last
Wednesday, was suspended late on Sunday due to deteriorating weather
conditions.  Although formal search efforts will be scaled back, the case
remains open and park staff will continue to look for clues during routine
patrols and park air operations.  C.H. was hiking alone and left no
itinerary.  He has now been out over five nights, with temperatures during
that period dropping well below freezing.  Snow fell to the 3,000 foot
elevation on Sunday afternoon.  Indications are that he was lightly clothed
and equipped only for a day hike when he headed out; he had no survival gear
with him.  Over the four days of the search, up to 105 searchers from a dozen
organizations searched and researched areas with the greatest potential for
finding him, employing a variety of overlapping search strategies and
tactics.  The overall search area is about 64,000 acres in size and extends
from 3,200 feet to 7,500 feet.  It includes dense forest, numerous drainages,
waterfalls, and rugged mountainous terrain.  Of the total of 4,000 search
hours logged to date, almost 2,900 hours were recorded by volunteer search
and rescue organizations, family, and friends.  [John Krambrink, CR, MORA,
11/16]

97-706 - Denver Service Center (CO) - Death of Employee

Linda Romola, an outdoor recreation planner with Denver Service Center's
Resource Planning Group, died of an apparent heart attack on November 14th. 
Linda received her degree in history from Colorado State University in 1975
and began her government career as a coding clerk with EPA in 1978.  She was
hired by DSC as a coop student later that year.  In 1980, she received a
masters in urban and regional planning and community development from the
University of Colorado, and subsequently worked for DSC as both an outdoor
recreation planner and a historian.  Funeral services will be held tomorrow
morning at 9 a.m. at the chapel at Mt. Olivet Cemetery at 12801 W. 44th
Avenue in Denver.  [Cynthia Young, DSC, 11/17]

97-707 - Natchez Trace Parkway (MI/AL/TN) - MVA with Fatality

On November 16th, M.H., 49, of Canton, Mississippi, was killed in an
accident on the parkway.  M.H. was traveling northbound when her vehicle
left the road, went down an embankment, and struck a tree.  She was not
wearing a seatbelt and sustained multiple injuries.  It appears that driver
fatigue was a contributing factor in the accident.  [Tim Francis, ACR, NATR,
11/17]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

No entries.

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Interior FY98 Appropriations Bill Enacted - President Clinton signed the
Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 1997 on
November 14th following Congressional approval of the bill's conference
report (H. Rpt. 105-337).  Here are some highlights of the bill as passed:

o Fee Demo - The fee demonstration language has been changed to allow
demo parks to be allocated 80% of ALL fee revenue collected by them in
FY 1998 and FY 1999, except for Golden Eagle revenue, which will be
accounted for and allocated based on the process designed for it as a
"demo project" unto itself.  There is no longer any base target that
needs to be exceeded first, as was the case in FY 1997; it is estimated
that this change will allow the NPS to retain an additional $50+
million for funding both its 80% and 20% project accounts.  Since the
NPS will now keep all the revenue from demo park fee operations, the
legislation requires that demo parks pay for their cost of collection
out of their 80% allocation.  Despite this requirement, most demo parks
will benefit greatly from the rule change, some more than doubling
their project income.

o Priority Land Acquisitions, Land Exchanges, and Maintenance - The bill
includes $699 million over four years for four bureaus, including $272
million to be allocated later among NPS, FWS and BLM.  Funds from this
sum are also earmarked for the Forest Service for two areas nearby and
affecting Yellowstone NP - the New World Mine site (acquisition), and
Beartooth Highway (rehabilitation and maintenance).

o Environmental Improvement and Restoration Fund - This new fund is
established to authorize funding for four bureaus from interest on
investments, and for priority maintenance and modernization.  The NPS
may get an estimated $12 million annually, subject to appropriation.

o Operation of the National Park System - Congress added a net total of
$13,339,000 to the NPS request, including increases of $9,670,000 for
the special park operations initiative, $12,000,000 that had been
requested in the Everglades restoration fund for research, and a net
$250,000 for trails.  But Congress also reduced the entire increases
requested for cooperative ecosystem studies units ($2,400,000), the
education initiative ($1,000,000), and the Volunteers-in-Parks program
($981,000), and made partial cuts of $500,000 for the abandoned mine
lands program, $300,000 for air quality monitoring, $2,500,000 for the
vanishing treasures initiative, and $900,000 for FTS 2000.

o National Recreation and Preservation - Congress added a net total of
$2,196,000 to the NPS request, including a net increase of $3,596,000
for Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, for
heritage area grants, and for statutory aid.  But it eliminated the
entire $1,000,000 requested for watershed restoration and the $400,000
sought for heritage technical assistance.

o Historic Preservation Fund - Congress cut $4,800,000, all of it from
the increase requested for historically black colleges and
universities.  This action left an increase of $4,200,000 for the
program.

o Construction - Congress added a net total of $64,901,000, including a
total of $76,449,000 for 50 projects added for which no funds were
requested, and $11,900,000 that had been requested in the Everglades
restoration fund for modified water delivery.  The bill includes
reductions of $19,540,000 for seven projects, $808,000 for emergency,
unscheduled and housing projects, and $3,100,000 for planning.

o Land Acquisition - Congress added a net total of $72,390,000, including
increases of $18,040,000 for 12 areas for which no funds were
requested, $4,300,000 for three other areas, $76,000,000 for South
Florida that had been requested in the Everglades restoration fund, and
$1,300,000 for administration.  Reductions totaled $27,250,000 for six
areas.

o Report Language - Report language expressed concern over the management
of the construction and the employee housing programs, and directed
secretarial review and recommendations, development and implementation
of guidelines, and proposal of a two-year action plan to reduce the
housing inventory.  It also said that no funds for additional housing
construction are to be expected until the directives are fully
implemented.  Other important report language concerned the House
committee's intention "to keep a very close accounting of the
maintenance backlog and how the additional [fee] funds are being used
to reduce that backlog."

The president has through this Thursday (that is, five days from the bill's
passage, excluding Sunday) to veto specific line items in the act.  Details
on any such line-item vetoes will appear in the Morning Report should they
occur.  [Jim Giammo, Budget, WASO]

FLHP Funding Update - Although the Senate indicated they would not do so,
both houses of Congress enacted a six-month extension (or, in effect, a
continuing resolution) for the Federal Lands Highway Programs just before
recessing last week until late January,   The program is funded at 50% of
last year's levels.  That amounts to $42 million for NPS (half of $84
million).  This will enable the Service's FLHP program to be conducted at a
relatively normal pace until Congress completes action on ISTEA
reauthorization legislation, which likely will not occur until at least
March.  In addition to funding on-going work, the Service will now be able to
proceed with some first- and second-quarter project awards.  Further guidance
on how the Service and FHWA will operate in light of this interim funding
situation during the next six months will be provided by WASO in the near
future.  [John Gingles, FMD/WASO]

MEMORANDA

No entries.

EXCHANGE

No entries.

OBSERVATIONS

This section, which appears intermittently in the Morning Report, contains
observations regarding the National Park Service, the System and the several
professions of park employees.  Today's submission was sent along by Kaarina
Merikaarto at Olympic NP: 

"The tide of the earth's population is rising, the reservoir of earth's
living resources is falling.  Technologists may outdo themselves in the
creation of artificial substitutes for natural subsistence, and new areas,
such as those in tropical or subtropical regions, may be adapted to human
use, but even such resources or developments cannot be expected to offset the
present terrific attack upon the natural life-giving elements of the earth. 
There is only one solution: Man must recognize the necessity of cooperating
with nature.  He must temper his demands and use and conserve the natural
living resources of this earth in a manner that alone can provide for the
continuation of his civilization.  The final answer is to be found only
through comprehension of the enduring processes of nature.  The time for
defiance is at an end."

                                    Fairfield Osborne, from "Our
                                    Plundered Planet," 1949

                                *  *  *  *  *

Distribution of the Morning Report is through a mailing list managed by park,
office and/or field area cc:Mail hub coordinators.  Please address requests
pertaining to receipt of the Morning Report to your servicing hub
coordinator.

Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.

                                  --- ### ---