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Plight of the Parks

Candlelight Vigil Planned for Harpers Ferry

It's been a year since a 45-foot-wide, 2,000-foot-long trench was blazed, without permission, through a portion of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park to lay utility lines for a commercial development. And still the government has not taken any action against the developers. To call attention to this, a candlelight vigil is planned for August 17th at the park.

Are Yellowstone's Geysers At Risk From BLM's Leasing Proposals?

The geothermal features in Yellowstone National Park were largely responsible for its designation as the world's first national park in 1872. These features are a global treasure. Nowhere else in the world can you find the array or number of geysers, hot springs, mud pots, and fumaroles found in Yellowstone. More than 75 percent of the world's geysers, including the world's largest are in Yellowstone’s seven major basins.

Must We Clearly Set Out "Principles of Parks"?

For more than a century the United States has been in the national park business, and for nearly a century the National Park Service has been guided in managing those parks by the National Park Service Organic Act. Some groups, though, question whether another road map of sorts, a declaration of principles, should also be referred to when managing the parks.

What's Your Vision for the Centennial Initiative?

How do you think the National Park Service's Centennial Initiative (or Challenge, depending on whom you ask) should be funded? And how do you think those funds should be spent? There were quite a few suggestions tossed about in Washington today as both the House and Senate held hearings on legislation proposing ways to fund the Centennial Initiative.

Protecting Grand Teton from Drilling Projects

Wyoming is home to some of the Lower 48's greatest energy resources, particularly natural gas. The southwestern corner of the state currently is the hot spot in terms of energy exploration, and one area companies have their eyes on is the Wyoming Range. Some Interior Department officials, however, are opposed to drilling there, saying it could be detrimental to Grand Teton's wildlife and scenery.

Setting Precedents in the Parks

There's a passage in Director's Order 53, one of the many documents that guide National Park Service management decisions, that warns of proverbial icebergs ready to assail superintendents who truly believe their mission is to "conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."

RS2477 And the National Parks

The other day a federal judge tossed out a lawsuit that aimed to open Surprise Canyon in Death Valley National Park to ORV traffic. That post generated a lot of debate over the propriety of a road in that rugged canyon. Those who filed the lawsuit claimed they had a right to the road thanks to a Civil War-era statute known as R.S. 2477. Well, Death Valley isn't the only park that could suffer from this statute.

Parties in the Parks: Much Ado About Nothing?

Is it appropriate for the National Park Service to transform portions of the prison on Alcatraz Island into a cabaret with scantily clad dancers, all in the name of luring younger generations to the parks? Should corporations be allowed to rent out portions of parks for lavish parties? These are hot-button topics to some, but elicit a shrug of the shoulder from others.

House Leaders Propose $1 Billion Parks Centennial Funding Plan

In a move that can be expected to generate some attention from the White House, two prominent members of the House of Representatives have introduced a billion-dollar centennial funding bill for the national park system. Two big differences from President Bush's initiative: no private matching funds are required, and this package has an identified funding source.
Image icon HR 3094 National Park Service Centennial.pdf

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