Officials in Monroe County, Florida, which includes the Florida Keys, are caught in a classic land management dilemma—how to manage growth in an orderly manner and pay for the high cost of protecting environmentally sensitive lands in an area that is ripe for development. One solution is a controversial proposal by local officials to ask the National Park Service to acquire some of the property.

It's that time of year grizzly bears and hunters love in Grand Teton National Park -- time for the annual elk reduction hunt. Mandated by the park's enabling legislation and fueled, more than a few believe, by the state of Wyoming's elk feedlots and the National Elk Refuge, the hunt is scheduled to open October 11.

How many hats should we expect national park rangers to wear? Already we expect them to cover law enforcement, interpretation, and backcountry patrols, and to be quick to put on their "search and rescue" hat when need arises. Should they also be lifeguards or, perhaps more generally, safety officers to protect park visitors, at times from themselves?

Officials at Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, concerned about a judge's ruling that blocks recreational snowmobiling and snow coach use in the parks, are searching for a way to get around that ruling.