A new USGS report with a long title has this short take-away message: All nine giant constrictor species capable of colonizing areas of the United States pose moderate to severe ecological risks, and some pose a credible risk to humans.
Scientists working in Denali National Park suspect that melting permafrost might be an important reason why many of Alaska’s shallow lakes and wetlands have shrunk or disappeared. If the trend continues, wetland-dependent wildlife might be severely impacted.
A recent federal ruling on drilling noise in a national wildlife refuge near Great Sand Dunes National Park suggests that the courts may be leaning toward more rigorous protection for natural sound in federal recreation lands.
Gap founder Donald Fisher is dead, and so is his proposal to build an art museum at the Presidio. Fisher’s magnificent collection of contemporary art will instead go to San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art.
Federal officials are finally fast-tracking efforts to eradicate Burmese pythons from the Everglades. If this can be done, and that’s a very big if, it will take teamwork, technology, hard work, and good luck.
Officials have confirmed the presence of sylvatic plague and tularemia in Badlands National Park. That’s bad news for the park’s prairie dogs and black-footed ferrets, but visitors should be OK if they use common sense safety precautions.
Frustrated by fierce opposition, the Fishers have abandoned plans to build a contemporary art museum at the Main Post of San Francisco's Presidio. Alternative sites at the Presidio and elsewhere will now be considered.
Jackson Hole Airport still hasn’t compensated the Park Service for the 533-acre footprint it planted inside Grand Teton National Park back in the 1980s. TNC says it’s high time for this 25-year old debt to be paid and suggests how the money can be raised.
You can’t let people jump out of your helicopter anywhere you please. You can’t buzz the crowd on the shore. You can’t endanger other visitors when you land your helicopter on a houseboat. And if you keep doing this kind of stuff at Glen Canyon, law enforcement rangers will make your acquaintance and a federal court will help to shape your future.
Koi herpes virus is what’s killing the carp at Lake Mohave. KHV can’t spread to people or other fish, thank goodness, but this new disease is very bad news for carp.
An alliance of NGOs has asked the National Park Service to more thoroughly consider safety issues before extending the lease for the commercial airport now operating in Grand Teton National Park.
Convicted Yellowstone poacher Stephen Slavinsky has been prohibited from hunting or possessing firearms for the rest of his life. If he wants to visit national parks again, he has to wait 20 years.
NOAA forecasters expect a normal- to low-activity hurricane season this year, but you never know for sure. There are 21 storm names pre-selected for use in 2009.
Breeding populations of Burmese pythons have been established in Everglades National Park and some other parts of Florida. Limiting the growth and spread of this ecologically disruptive, potentially dangerous invader will be a daunting task.
Guys who holler “watch this!” just before they do something incredibly stupid aren’t the only jackasses in our national parks. We’ve got the real kind too, and where there are feral burros the habitat is degraded and native wildlife suffer. Cute though they may be, burros are unwelcome in our national parks.
The Asian swamp eel is prolific, hardy, voracious, ecologically disruptive, and on its way to becoming the scourge of the Everglades. Is it already too late to stop it?
Forget what you might have heard about polar bears being the first species to gain Endangered Species Act protection due to climate change. Two species of coral lay claim to that unfortunate distinction.
This virulently invasive plant, sometimes called the “lime-green cancer” and "the most dangerous plant in Florida," already infests some areas of Everglades National Park. If not controlled soon it might wipe out decades of ecosystem restoration efforts. Do you know what this nightmare plant is?
At War in The Pacific National Historical Park, vandals and thieves have desecrated memorials erected in honor of the more than 16,000 Chamorros and American servicemen who suffered and died on Guam during World War II.
Harsh criticism forced the Presidio Trust to rethink its plans for the new Contemporary Art Museum at the Presidio. A new "chop and drop" proposal emphasizes smaller, better located structures built largely underground.
A decade ago, visitors at Petrified Forest National Park were stealing the park’s petrified wood at the rate of 12 tons a year. Warning signage, hefty fines, legal purchase options, and other countermeasures have done some good, but losses continue to mount.
Fearing that Democrats may win the White House as well as strengthen their control of Congress, President Bush is rushing to eviscerate as many environmental protection laws as he can before the moving trucks arrive. Though undemocratic and unethical, the methods he is using are quite legal.
The Unilever-sponsored National Parks America Tour, a volunteer program with over 25 scheduled stops in the national parks this year, has organized a beach cleanup at Padre Island National Seashore for Saturday, October 18. The huge volume of storm debris left by last month’s Hurricane Ike has been very difficult to deal with and continues to wash ashore daily.
From time to time we see a news story about some government project or proposal that causes us to think, "That sure doesn't sound right," and wonder how it happened. Here's a current example.
If you want to enjoy some of those iconic views from places like Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park, you might want to plan your trip sooner rather than later. While most Americans and their elected officials have been mesmerized by the economic crisis and the upcoming election, enormous changes in the management of public lands in Utah are afoot. The effects on a number of national parks could be substantial.
Hurricane Ike storm debris has drifted southwest along the Texas Gulf Coast and littered the beaches at Padre Island National Seashore. Cleaning it up is a mammoth task that must be done quickly. Protecting seashore wildlife is a major concern.
The Forest Service illegally approved 39 uranium exploration drilling holes in the Kaibab National Forest near Grand Canyon National Park. Now a court challenge has produced a settlement that stops the drilling and calls for full environmental and public reviews. Many fear that uranium development may contaminate water in the park and the Colorado River.
Padre Island National Seashore celebrates its 46th anniversary on September 28. Extending along the Texas Gulf Coast from Corpus Christi to the Mexican border, this narrow coastal barrier offers plenty of high quality recreation. There are many managerial difficulties, though, and some may get lots worse.
The Orphan Mine, which produced uranium during 1956-1969, is situated on and below the South Rim at Grand Canyon National Park. Abandoned in 1969, the site is contaminated with hazardous materials, some of which are radioactive. Now the site must be cleaned up, and it’s a time-consuming, complicated process.
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