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Pruning the Parks: Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area Was a National Park for Just Five Years

Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area in Utah-Wyoming had been in the National Park System for only five years when, on October 1, 1968, Congress transferred it to the U.S. Forest Service. There was little sense of loss. Congress hadn’t mandated NPS administration and the NPS wasn’t deeply committed to reservoir recreation management.

National Park Quiz 22: Angels and Saints

Quiz 10 on July 9 was “Speak of the Devil.” Fair is fair, so this week we’ll turn the focus in the heavenly direction and deal with angels, saints, and such. Answers are at the end. If we catch you peeking, we’ll make you write “The cognitive complexities of the term ‘saint’ render lexical disambiguation extraordinarily challenging” 100 times on the whiteboard.
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Uranium Exploratory Drilling Near Grand Canyon National Park is Halted Pending a Full Environmental Review

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.

A Florida Keys National Park? Good Conservation or Florida Bail-out?

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.

Padre Island National Seashore Offers Lots of Fun for Visitors and Lots of Problems for Managers

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.

National Accessibility Achievement Awards Recognize Accomplishment in an Area of Vital Concern to the National Park Service

The National Park Service began making National Accessibility Achievement Awards in 1999 to recognize outstanding accomplishments in architectural design, program design, and sustained efforts to improve accessibility for persons with disabilities. For the FY 2008 awards round, a five-member panel of experts will vet 14 nominations in four categories.

Grand Canyon Railway May Expand Rail Service to the South Rim at Grand Canyon National Park

The Grand Canyon Railway currently operates two trains daily between Williams, Arizona and the Grand Canyon’s South Rim tourist hub. Now the Park Service is considering whether to allow a third daily train and an evening excursion trip from the South Rim.