This weekend six lawmakers from the U.S. House of Representatives' Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition took a two-day climate change tour of Yellowstone National Park. The tour resulted with three of the representatives proposing legislation to ban non-reusable plastic water bottles in national parks.
House representative Mike Quigley (D-IL) introduced the bill. Quigley said the tour made him realize the importance that National Parks have to the greater ecosystem.
"We have to be concerned about warming waters, shorter and warmer winters, smaller snowpack, changes in plant species, the increase of invasive species," said Quigley. "Those are all things that matter in the long-term."
After learning the impacts of climate change in Yellowstone, Quigley said it makes sense to do anything possible to reduce impact in the area.
"It's such a beautiful pristine environment. You don't want to do anything to disturb that beauty," he said. "So it makes sense to move forward with what Obama did originally."
In 2017, the Trump administration reversed Obama-era guidelines that allowed national parks to ban single use water bottles. Quigley said reducing plastic waste in parks will help protect their ecosystems.
