Plight of the Parks

U.S. Senator To Make Bid to Allow National Park Visitors to Carry Guns

Why would a doctor be determined to provide more access to guns in the country? U.S. Senator Thomas Coburn, a Republican from Oklahoma, will try to do that by introducing an amendment that would bar the Interior secretary from enforcing the current ban on carrying weapons in the parks.

CoburnGunAmendmentCAM08040_xml.pdf

02-01-08+multi-organization+firearms+letter.doc

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By Kurt Repanshek - February 7th, 2008 8:36am

51 comments

How Will the President's 2009 Budget Proposal Treat the Park Service?

On Monday the president is scheduled to release his budget proposal for the 2009 fiscal year. What will be interesting to see is whether he continues to show some love for the National Park Service.

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By Kurt Repanshek - February 2nd, 2008 5:16pm

‘Study Group’ Meets to Determine fate of Yellowstone National Park’s East Entrance

Yellowstone National Park officials met earlier this week with several representatives from Wyoming to discuss the options at their disposal for bombing snow-covered mountain slopes in our nation’s first national park. Why? To keep it clear of avalanche danger for the handful of snowmobiles and snowcoaches that enter the park through Sylvan Pass on the park’s east side each day during the winter season.

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By tstevens - January 31st, 2008 12:09pm

8 comments

Strange Bedfellows: The National Park Service and the American Recreation Coalition

It's nice to have your cake and eat it too, isn't it? Of course it is. But it's not always appropriate, is it? Take the National Park Service. One of its main jobs is to preserve beautiful places. Can it adequately do that if it cozies up to industries that pollute those places?

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By Kurt Repanshek - January 29th, 2008 7:16pm

5 comments

Is Mining Threatening Our National Parks in Alaska?

The history of mining in Alaska has left a legacy of pollution and other harmful negative impacts to our lands and waters, including those now protected within our National Park System. While some of these old mines are now being cleaned up, others are creating new problems.

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By Joan Frankevich - January 29th, 2008 5:59pm

Despite All the Talk About A Bountiful NPS Budget, Not All National Parks Doing Well

We've heard lots about how bountiful the National Park Service's 2008 budget is thanks to the Bush administration. Well, don't let that talk make you think all is great across the park system.

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By Kurt Repanshek - January 28th, 2008 6:50pm

Why Did The Park Service Agree To Secret Meetings Over Yellowstone Snowmobiling?

Yellowstone National Park officials plan to meet in private with representatives from the state of Wyoming and the town of Cody to discuss snowmobiling over Sylvan Pass. Does that mesh with Park Service Director Mary Bomar's pledge of transparency?

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By Kurt Repanshek - January 25th, 2008 5:35pm

3 comments

NPCA Keeping An Eye on Utah Tar Sands Developments

U.S. Bureau of Land Management efforts to spur development of "tar sands" in Utah near several national park units are being watched by the National Parks Conservation Association.

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By Kurt Repanshek - January 14th, 2008 4:08pm

Great Basin National Park's Air Could Be Compromised By Proposed Power Plant

Great Basin National Park, which boasts the cleanest air of any park in the Lower 48, could lose that distinction if a coal-fired power plant is allowed to go on-line as proposed just 38 miles northwest of the park.

GRBA-Power Plant Letter.pdf

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By Kurt Repanshek - January 11th, 2008 5:42pm

10 comments

Tar Sands Development Could Impact Canyonlands National Park, Dinosaur National Monument, Glen Canyon NRA

A natural resources juxtapositonal twist of fate has placed the spectacular Canyonlands National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in close proximity to an energy deposit whose extraction could sully the park units.

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By Chance Finegan - October 25th, 2011 6:52pm

6 comments

INN Member

The easiest way to explore RV-friendly National Park campgrounds.

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

Here’s the definitive guide to National Park System campgrounds where RVers can park their rigs.

Our app is packed with RVing- specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 national parks.

You’ll also find stories about RVing in the parks, tips helpful if you’ve just recently become an RVer, and useful planning suggestions.