@YCS is the primary concessioner in Yosemite National Park and provides a variety of guest services to the park's four million annual visitors, including hotels, restaurants, transportation, sightseeing tours, conferences, recreation, and merchandise. YCS also takes its role as steward of this national treasure seriously, and it asks all visitors to join the company in working together to protect and preserve the park for future generations.
YCS operations are regulated by 150 governmental and private agencies, including the National Park Service, the National Transportation Safety Board, the California Public Utilities Commission, the Structural Pest Control Board, and @Mariposa County. The contract under which YCS operates is considered revolutionary for park concessions, notably for the higher revenues it will generate for the park and for the federal government. The National Park Service estimates as much as 20% of revenues generated in the park will be returned to the government as compared to .075% under the previous contract.
There's so much to learn about Yosemite -- its cultural history, unique geology, native wildlife, new and spectacular sights to experience û so YCS strives to develop park programs and educational activities that assure the continued enjoyment of this national treasure for future generations. Some of these free and fee-based education programs include:
* interpretive talks,
* slide presentations
* camera walks
* movies at hotel amphitheaters
* family-oriented programs
* conservation based programs
But education is not limited to human interest and/or knowledge. For example, while some people say there's a bear problem in Yosemite, in fact, it's really a people problem. People carelessly leave food that the bears smell and seek out, and consequently these animals have lost their innate fear of humans. To help prevent this, YCS developed a Bear Awareness program to educate park visitors, including messages on tray liners, cups and tent cards, publications, and cartoons on electric buses. These efforts have drastically reduced harmful human/bear encounters, and have reduced the number of both human and bear deaths.
And with 4 million annual visitors to Yosemite each year, recycling is not just a nice concept, it's an absolute necessity to keep the park beautiful and healthy. So when YCS became the park concessioner in 1993, it embraced existing recycling practices -- and it has tried to improve them each year. But there's only so much that a concession company can do û the rest is up to the people who visit this national treasure. The more care each of us takes with that treasure, the longer it will last to delight and amaze the generations to come.
