National Parks Initiative

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) partners with the National Park Service (NPS) through the Clean Cities National Parks Initiative. The initiative supports transportation projects that educate park visitors on the benefits of shifting to affordable, domestic alternative fuels, advanced vehicles, and fuel-saving technologies and strategies. Since 2010, VTO and Clean Cities and Communities coalitions have partnered with NPS on 35 projects to put alternative fuel and fuel-efficient vehicles on the road, reduce vehicle idling, and improve vehicle efficiency. These actions support and coincide with NPS's efforts to reduce vehicle congestion, air pollution, and resource degradation, and to preserve the long-term quality of the parks.

Wilson's Creek National Battlefield

Find a Project Wilson's Creek National BattlefieldBy park...Acadia National Park Blue Ridge Parkway Cape Cod National Seashore Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site Catoctin Mountain Park Cedar Breaks National Monument Christiansted National Historic Site Denali National Park and Preserve Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument Golden Gate National Recreation Area Grand Teton National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park Independence National Historical Park Mammoth Cave National Park Mesa Verde National Park Mississippi National River and Recreation Area National Mall and Memorial Parks Nicodemus National Historic Site Pea Ridge National Military Park Petrified Forest National Park Petroglyph National Monument Pipe Spring National Monument Point Reyes National Seashore Rocky Mountain National Park Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site San Antonio Missions National Historical Park Scotts Bluff National Monument Shenandoah National Park Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Yellowstone National Park Zion National Park

Civil War musket and artillery firing demonstrations are presented at Wilson's Creek National Battlefield from Memorial Day to Labor Day on selected weekends. Courtesy of NPS

Located in Missouri, Wilson's Creek National Battlefield is the site of the first major Civil War battle fought west of the Mississippi River, allowing visitors to experience one of the best-preserved battlefields in the nation. Working with the Kansas City Regional Clean Cities Coalition in 2015, the park added a propane pick-up truck, four propane lawn mowers, and propane refueling infrastructure to its fleet. The park also collaborated with the coalition to demonstrate how these technologies can help preserve the historic landscape. This project is estimated to help the park reduce its annual emissions by more than 4 million tons of CO₂ and displace the use of nearly 660 gasoline-gallon equivalents of petroleum per year.

See how the Clean Cities National Parks Initiative supports parks transportation projects.

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