Superintendent Dan Kimball announced today that Everglades National Park will implement an interim program to allow generator use at selected camping sites in the Flamingo district of the park. Starting Saturday, May 26, 2007 until Monday, Oct. 1, 2007, Everglades National Park will allow RV's to run generators uninterrupted in portions of "C" loop in the Flamingo campground area of the park. The row of campsites in "C" loop, furthest from other campers, will be designated for generator use. Generators used here must conform to National Park Service regulations pertaining to audio disturbances, which states that "motorized equipment or machinery cannot exceed a noise level of 60 decibels measured on the A-weighted scale at 50 feet" (36 CFR 2.12).
“This relaxation of generator use during the 2007 summer season is an effort to accommodate overnight visits to Flamingo since the popular Flamingo lodge was destroyed by Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma in 2005," says Kimball. “We are always interested in improving the visitor’s experience of the park and have developed this interim effort to enhance summer overnight stays at Flamingo in response to suggestions we’ve received since the Flamingo Lodge closure." While, park staff is pleased to provide this option, they will be monitoring the program to ensure there is no significant impact to other campers’ experiences from the additional noise these generators can create.
The designated camping sites for this project do have picnic tables and grills available, but restroom facilities in that entire loop will remain closed. The dump station will be available for RV use. There will not be a charge for camping from June 1 - September 1; but RV's will be required to self-register and pay the $16.00 per night prior to June 1 and after September 1.
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Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
