| Page 1159 | National Parks Traveler

Fragmentation of ecosystems is the most obvious effect of encroaching development around parks that are inadequate to preserve mobile species. Of greater concern in the future will be the rise in the levels of poaching not imaginable today. Of wildlife and plants, of fossil resources, of minerals and archeological resources, anything that that can be sold.

Jan 5th - 13:04pm | Matt Stubbs

Bob, the one that comes to mind is the fact that an ORV rule was written and released to Washington for completion, but was never followed up on by the NPS and then the NPS sat around until a lawsuit in 2007. In this instance the NPS is totally responsible for this complete issue that is so hotly debated today.

Jan 5th - 12:35pm | Bob

I am struck by the fact that all of the challenges are caused by someone outside the NPS. Surely, there must be at least one topic where the NPS has made its own mistakes?

Jan 5th - 12:05pm | Ron Saunders

I concur with Matt Stubbs, and would add, that it is difficult to support additional funding to our National Park System when there is a contengent of people that would eliminate some of us from the equation simply because they do not understand or agree with our philosophy of life. I actually feel, at times, that they would just as soon eliminate people from the Parks altogether.

Jan 5th - 10:12am | Lee Dalton

Anonymous at 8:30 certainly brings up some very valid points.

Jan 5th - 09:49am | Dave Crowl

I see the main problem being Funding. I do not mind seeing the NPS growing and adding parks like they seem to do regularly, but it is hard to add parks with a declining budget.

Jan 5th - 09:30am | Anonymous

I have been a seasonal park ranger for the National Park Service for five years (working winter and summer) I have a B.S degree in Natural resource management and the Park Service has spent a lot of time and money training me. I have been trying to get a permanent job with the Park Service since before I went to college I have put a considerable amount of time and effort towards this goal.

Jan 5th - 06:40am | Lawrence J. Caldwell

The number one problem is that there simply are not enough National Parks. In addition to those units in the system that do not enjoy Park status, there are places in our country still not within the system at all. Regardless of all the other issues, the first step always has to be to get the treasured unit into the system. Then figure out how to resolve all the other problems.

Jan 5th - 06:32am | Matt Stubbs

Losing access to "Future Generations" because of outside influences. Losing dollars meant for improvements to lawsuits that are nothing but lawyers preying on the environmentalist groups agenda. Losing touch with the future generations that we are supposedly saving the park for.

We'd Like to Welcome the Glacier National Park Fund to Our List of Sponsors

Jan 5th - 14:38pm | Debra

Thanks, Kurt, it looks great!

Jan 4th - 12:16pm | Merry Lynn

This looks great, Kurt! Thanks!!

Lease For Airport Inside Grand Teton National Park Extended

Jan 5th - 12:53pm | ED K

Just observe the TONE of this article: "the final Record of Decision .... URGEs stronger measures...." but there is no REQUIREMENT. The Approach from the south is VOLUNTARY. As one who has dealt with airports and airport management in the past, I assure you that the National Park WILL be destroyed, in order to facilitate the needs of aviation.

Jan 4th - 10:50am | jersu

I traveled through the Jackson airport last summer. Because of its relationship with the park, I expected it to be a tiny place with tiny airplanes. I was wrong. There were some smaller jets, but I watched at least two 737s and a 767 come through within an hour mid-day.

Snow-capped Mountains Offer a Different Look at Death Valley National Park

Jan 5th - 09:52am | RangerLady

The snow and rain can help the spring wildflowers, but it all depends on what happens in the spring. It could be enough rain and snow for the little fellers to pop their heads out of the soil, but if the rain stops and the temperatures increase then they will burn up before they can ever bloom.

Jan 4th - 18:48pm | Anonymous

The area has broken rainfall records in December, surely the wildflowers will be spectacular this spring.

Jan 4th - 18:46pm | Anonymous

I am leaving for my first visit to Death Valley on Sunday, I wish I was there now!

Jan 4th - 18:41pm | Kolby

I wonder if this will help the spring wildflower bloom?

Florida Officials To Install Panther Detection System With Hopes of Slowing Road Kills

Jan 5th - 09:25am | risa reneeAnonymous

My heart goes out to these causes that will help the wildlife and the preservation of our precious environment.

Political Lineup For House Natural Resources Committee Sure to Produce Fireworks Over Public Lands

Jan 5th - 08:38am | Ryan

George, I wish we could find a middle, but I think the average person is a myth, they do not exist.

Jan 5th - 08:01am | George Orwell

Like I said, throw out the extreme arguments. Like to hear more from those in the center who carry the water for everyone.:):)

Jan 5th - 05:33am | Bob Janiskee

The cheapest, fastest, cleanest, and all-around smartest energy strategy -- now, and always -- is to find ways to sustain a satisfactory quality of life while using less energy and wasting less energy. The amount of high-quality energy waste in this country is absolutely staggering.

Jan 4th - 23:14pm | Anonymous

I know what we can do to create jobs in America:

Jan 4th - 18:54pm | Kurt Repanshek

George, it's always interesting to see what position the speaker is in, ie minority or majority. The GOP members made plenty of foolish, unproductive comments when they were in the minority. I'm not disagreeing with you, just saying that what both parties seem to be lacking are statesmen/women who can play nice no matter if they're in the majority or minority.

Jan 4th - 18:47pm | George Orwell

By the way, Markey's comments are pure BULL. That type of sad untrue rhetoric is ...not productive and NOT believable when people are engaged as the public is and not accepting of the silly sound bites that often, in the past, have played to pop culture environmentalism. There is a great correction going on and the earlier it's realized and dealt with the better. :)

Jan 4th - 16:49pm | George Orwell

There needs to be some consideration for job creation, NOW, in the private sector! It is a serious situation and I'm not seeing the concern from many that have government jobs apparently only interested in MORE government jobs.

Jan 4th - 16:20pm | Anonymous

Wilderness is a disease of the mind.

Jan 4th - 15:58pm | George

The main point of the secretarial order is to restore BLM's authority to consider wilderness in its resource management plans, under the inventory and planning provisions of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976. For many years the Forest Service has been doing what the order directs BLM to do.

Jan 4th - 11:26am | George Orwell

There is hope:):)

Jan 4th - 09:02am | Ryan

J.Q., I appreciate your willingness to have a real conversation about this!!!! OK, answers, well, if I had some really good ones, I would be a rich and famous individual.

111th Congress Did Well When it Comes to National Park Wilderness, But It Could Have Done Better

Jan 5th - 07:20am | Josh

"For instance, neither Yellowstone nor Glacier have officially designated wilderness. Nor do Canyonlands, Voyageurs, Grand Canyon, Great Smoky Mountains, Big Bend, Grand Teton, Craters of the Moon National Monument, Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, or Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore."

Jan 5th - 07:13am | Josh

I think the end is near for some of the National Parks, including our Voyageurs National Park. People in the area are pushing to have it changed to a national wildlife area. I put a poll on my web site http://lakekabetogama.org pertaining to this issue and the results are overwhelmingly in favor of eliminating the National Park designation.

Jan 4th - 13:21pm | y_p_w

My understanding about the renewed shellfish permit for DBOC is that its validity is contingent on the NPS reauthorizing the use of those specific shore operations. For example, the DBOC couldn't lose their right to their current shore operations and farm oysters in Drakes Estero with shore operations at Tomales Bay.

Jan 4th - 12:09pm | Kurt Repanshek

Thanks for your note, Ranger. I think more than a few of us are learning about the nuances every day as we follow life in the parks. As for the Point Reyes oyster debate, we've had a few stories on it: /2009/05/national-research-council-report-blasts-park-service-report-oyster-farming-point-reyes-natio

Jan 4th - 11:46am | Ranger

Well, this is a nice, thought-provoking article to start off the new year. Thanks.

Jan 4th - 11:46am | Jeffrey Creque

Mr. Buono has it wrong with respect to Senator Diane Feinstein’s provision to allow a ten-year extension of a two acre on-shore facility associated with a State of California aquaculture lease in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Jan 4th - 10:31am | George Orwell

The historic dairy farms still operating at Point Reyes seem to be working but to purists (?). How do purist's make a living, anyway? I'm glad there are a few decisions that actually include us in the food chain. :) Boy, does it ever storm at Point Reyes. The pines I saw grow horizontally :).

Jan 4th - 09:14am | Sarah Rolph

The information here about Drake's Bay Oyster is inaccurate and misleading. This statement is not true: "The authorization for the oyster farm in the Drakes Bay Estero was due to expire in 2012. At that point the nonconforming use would have ceased, enabling the NPS to convert the potential wilderness into full wilderness by publication of a Federal Register notice."

Jan 4th - 08:35am | George

Wilderness is valuable to discourage development in the back country. In 1966 the superintendent at Zion showed me a map indicating a proposed development of visitor facilities in the wild lands east of Zion Canyon, to be accessed by a spur road off the Mount Carmel highway.

Jan 4th - 07:13am | George Orwell

Is there a correlation between the 111th doing well and the country being in the tank with disaster looming?

Traveler's Gear Box: Would You Add The SteriPEN Journey To It?

Jan 5th - 02:46am | SEAsia traveler

I LOVE(D) our steripen...until it broke! We had Nalgenes that fit the seal of the pen perfectly and were able to turn the bottle upside down and swirl it without much leakage. With 2 months of use, never got sick, so it seem to do the trick.

What Do GOP Politicians Have Against Protecting National Park Landscapes?

Jan 4th - 23:39pm | Jim C.

As another poster mentioned, you need to fix that T.R. quote ("all marred" should be "unmarred" or whatever it really was). It looks like that typo was copied amongst other sites, including a NPS page.

Jan 4th - 23:35pm | Jim C.

It's highly annoying when Republicans name-drop Teddy Roosevelt as one of their own when they're accused of disrespecting nature.

Piping Plover Production Up At Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Jan 4th - 17:59pm | Dave

How did they get away with selling that large area of donated land up on the northern Outer Banks? I bet they did not put that in the newsletter. Are the people across this land really that stupid? Karma is coming any day.

Public Health Service Agrees to Operate Yosemite Medical Clinic

Jan 4th - 16:57pm | Tony Ascaso, RN

Yosemite Medical Clinic will close for 1 month, starting 1/1/11

Parking Just Got More Expensive at Mount Rushmore National Memorial

Jan 4th - 11:24am | LArry Smith

Why be upset about parking? Mt Rushmore is nothing more than a well-planned tourist trap devised by politicians. It has no historical value other than the artist's skills...(or perhaps the mt. goats that wander around). In fact the entire Black Hills area is a gigantic "DisneyUniverse" built to encourage tourism to the area...and it works!

Group Claims Big Cypress National Preserve Going Too Far With ORV Access, Panther Impacts

Jan 4th - 06:49am | Jon Merryman

BICY was a wasteland back in the 80s when I worked in the area. In the places where ORVs were allowed access, it literally looked like a construction zone -- like they were in the process of building a shopping mall. The only vegetation that hadn't totally been trampled to death were the trees. Anything shorter than an SUV had been mowed down and beat into a muddy pulp.

Finding Winter Bliss in a National Park Lodge

Jan 4th - 06:21am | Connie Hopkins

Hey Anonymous nice to "meet" you as well! I have a couple on Flicker myself, they're under: EDELWEISSTEXAS Connie

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