Plight of the Parks

To Drill Or Not To Drill For Oil Beneath Big Cypress National Preserve, That Is The Question

If there weren't enough controversial issues swirling about Big Cypress National Preserve, a cash-strapped Miami-Dade County has been mulling the possibility of drilling for oil beneath the preserve.

House Passes Legislation That Could Lead the National Park Service to Rebuild Road at North Cascades National Park

In a sign of bipartisan meddling when it comes to how the national parks should be managed, the House of Representatives has passed legislation that could force the National Park Service to tweak wilderness boundaries and rebuild a road in North Cascades National Park. The chamber's majority was evidently unmoved by a Park Service analysis that best interests of taxpayers and the park would be served by not rebuilding the Upper Stehekin Road.

FY 2010 Budget For National Park Service Can Only Go Up

No matter how you cut it, unless President Obama decides to veto some items, the FY 2010 budget for the National Park Service is going to be up roughly $200 million from the current funding level.

Trial Over What Constitutes a "Road" In Canyonlands National Park: Vestiges of Sagebrush Rebels

There long have been pockets of disgust over federal land ownership in the West, and perhaps nowhere are those sentiments stronger than in Utah, where roughly two-thirds of the landscape is federally managed. While the "Sagebrush Rebellion" mightily reared its head some three decades ago, its waning vestiges are on trial this week over whether a creek bed constitutes a road in Canyonlands National Park.

On Politics, Bureaucracy, and "Glamping" In the National Park System

The National Park Service's National Leadership Council met in Ohio last week. The meeting of the agency's top management was supposed to be the first under the direction of Jon Jarvis as Park Service director. Political gamesmanship, and apparently a dose of bureaucracy, unfortunately left Mr. Jarvis wearing his Pacific West Region director's hat.

Planners In "Wilderness Wal-Mart" Matter Oppose Development on Fringe of Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park

In somewhat of a surprise, county planners in northern Virginia have voted to oppose the development of a Wal-Mart Supercenter on hallowed land abutting the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park. But that's only a temporary victory for those who oppose the project.

Climate Change and National Parks: A Survival Guide for a Warming World -- Northern Flying Squirrel and other Threatened Mammals

The climate is not static. Ice ages come and go, pushing rivers of ice south and then pulling them back north across continents as temperatures and snowfalls rise and fall. Animal and plant species either stay ahead of these icy incursions and adapt, or perish.

Our National Parks: "For the Benefit And Enjoyment Of The People" (If You Don't Mind the Entrance Fee)

While the three "entrance-fee-free" weekends in the National Park System are now behind us, the debate over the propriety of park entrance fees no doubt will go forward, if not heighten, in the wake of some impressive visitor numbers logged by some parks. One organization that you won't hear lobbying for a permanent waiving of the fees, though, is the American Recreation Coalition, which was a strong voice for them more than a decade ago and continues that stance today.

Climate Change and National Parks: A Survival Guide for a Warming World -- Loon and Other Birds of the Great Lakes

Change is under way in the Great Lakes, the source of 84 percent of North America’s fresh water and more than 20 percent of the world’s supply. It is a progressive sweeping change that threatens to greatly transform the ecosystems of these inland seas by warming their waters and supplanting native species with harmful invasives. And it is a change that ultimately may threaten the viability of the common loon and dozens of other birds that depend on the lakes.

Climate Change and National Parks: A Survival Guide for a Warming World -- Grizzly Bears

Natural events — wildﬁres, ﬂoods, windstorms — often leave behind obvious marks on the landscapes they touch. Charred trees and scorched meadows, washed out trails, and swaths of fallen trees are some of the reminders of these powerful forces. The impacts wrought by other naturally occurring events and cycles are not always so easy to discern.

IUCN Scientists to Visit Glacier National Park in September to Study Possible Risks From Coal Mining

A team of international scientists will visit Glacier National Park and its northern neighbor, Waterton Lakes National Park, in September to study risks that might be posed by coal mining in British Columbia not far from the parks.

Are Our National Parks No Longer for the People?

Are national parks no longer for the people? Have environmental groups succeeded in legally creating roadblocks to prevent their enjoyment? An Ohio man believes so. But what do you think?

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve is In Excellent Condition, But Could That Be Jepodarized By Mining Interests?

When Dick Proenneke fled to Alaska in 1967, he headed to a remote, rugged, and incredibly beautiful wilderness. Today that setting -- Lake Clark National Park and Preserve -- continues to be remote, rugged, and incredibly beautiful. While an analysis of impacts to the park and its resources shows it's in excellent condition, overall, the prospect of mining just outside the park poses a significant threat to Lake Clark's resources.

With 391 Units In the National Park System, You'd Think TripAdvisor Could Find 10 It Liked

Memo to TripAdvisor: If you're going to run a story on the top 10 parks in the National Park System, make sure they're all in the National Park System, and, preferably, make sure they're all "national parks."

Updated: Coal Mine Proposed North Of Glacier National Park Strains US-Canadian Relations

The longstanding relations between the United States and Canada are being strained a bit by a proposal to mine for coal in a biologically diverse region of British Columbia that just happens to be upstream of Glacier National Park.

New Gun Regulations for National Parks, Wildlife Refuges Won't Take Effect for Nine Months

Don't go armed into a national park or wildlife refuge this weekend. New gun regulations for those federal properties won't take effect for nine months.

House Seals Deal To Allow Wide Range of Firearms into The National Park System

Thanks to a brilliant tactical move, gun rights advocates are a step closer to arming themselves in national parks and national wildlife refuges across the country following a U.S. House of Representatives' vote on a credit card bill.

Great Basin National Park Is Facing Threats to its Clear Air and Water Resources

Not even its remote location in eastern Nevada can protect Great Basin National Park from the pressures, demands, and impacts of urban areas. Proposed power plants threaten its air, and growing Las Vegas could impact the park's water resources.

NPCA: Climate Change Greatest Threat Facing the National Park System

When you think about threats to national parks, you can point to air pollution, water pollution, development on a park's boundaries, and genetic bottlenecks affecting a park's wildlife. But few people seem to think about climate change. Well, the National Parks Conservation Association wants you to start thinking about it.

Stimulating the National Parks: Good For the Short-Term, But Then What?

Over the coming months there will be a flurry of construction work across the National Park System thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. But then what?

Secretary Salazar Scuttles Oil and Gas Leases Near National Parks in Utah

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, in a move that repudiates the Bush administration's energy policies, on Wednesday scuttled a series of controversial oil and gas leases near national parks in Utah.

On Stimulus Packages, Lobbyists, and Congressfolk

If you've been paying any attention to how Congress is treating the National Park System in terms of the economic stimulus package, you'd have to agree there are a few interesting, and possibly even amusing, side stories.

Senate, House Far Apart on Economic Stimulus Funding for National Parks

As of today the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives are miles and miles apart over how they view the needs and worthiness of the National Park System when it comes to crafting an economic stimulus bill for the country.

What Priorities Should The Next National Park Service Director Address?

Yellowstone snowmobiles. Guns in the parks. Climate change. Infrastructure in shambles. These are just some of the issues the next director of the National Park Service will inherit. But how should he or she prioritize their approach to managing the National Park System and addressing its problems?

Gun Rules for The National Parks: Will They Really Make It Easier To Pack in the Parks?

The impending change of rules that would allow national park visitors to arm themselves stands a good chance of being placed in limbo, if not overturned, by legal challenges in the coming weeks and months. But if that doesn't happen, it'll be interesting to see how many gun owners actually follow the rules.

On the Political Front: Good And Bad News From the Bush Administration

There's mixed news today on the environmental front. On one hand, the Bush administration has pulled back a proposal that would weaken air quality rules for coal-fired power plants. But on the other it has moved forward with a rule to weaken the Endangered Species Act.

Wal-Mart Request Would Put a Super Center Next to The Wilderness Battlefield

Northern Virginia is a much more crowded place than it was during the Civil War. But Civil War historians, preservationists, and buffs, as well as National Park Service officials, are still flummoxed by Wal-Mart's wish to place a super center next to one of the most poignant battlefields of the Civil War.

Interior Officials Release Rule Change to Allow National Park Visitors to Arm Themselves

Interior Department officials finally did what was expected Friday when they published a rule change that will allow national park visitors to arm themselves.

Whatever Happened to That Rule Change To Allow You to Pack Heat in National Parks?

Remember earlier this year all the controversy over a proposed rule change to allow concealed weapons holders to arm themselves in the National Park System? Well, it's still lurking out there.

Bush Administration: Slash and Burn on The Way Out of Office?

As the end of the Bush administration nears, it's natural for many to look back on the past eight years and try to assess the sum impact. In the case of public lands and natural resources, it's relatively easy to castigate the outgoing administration for its seemingly heavy hand on that landscape.