The Nose Knows When Volcanoes Stir
Though equipment couldn't detect the gassing of a volcano, nearby residents smelled it.
- By justin.housman - March 3rd, 2025 2:45am
Association Of National Park Rangers Voices Concerns Over Impacts To National Park Service
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has been urged to reinstate positions the National Park Service lost through the Valentine's Day mass termination of federal employees, to fill the positions lost through those who opted to take the Trump administration's deferred resignation program, and to not "decimate the world’s most prestigious National Park System."
Trump's Assault On Public Lands Is Widespread, Says Center For Biological Diversity
The Center for Biological Diversity just released profiles on 10 national monuments and other protected public lands and waters that could be in the crosshairs of the Trump administration for fracking, drilling, and mining.
- By justin.housman - March 2nd, 2025 2:35am
Op-Ed |The National Park Service Provides “Direct Services” To Citizens
Adding insult to injury, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a memo on February 26, 2025, directing all federal agencies to submit their plans for a systematic Reduction in Force (RIF) by March 13. This lands with a thud on the National Park Service after it has already had over 1,000 probationary employees fired*, an unknown number taking the deferred resignation, and a start-stop-start again on seasonal hiring.
- By Kurt Repanshek - March 2nd, 2025 2:30am
Reduction In Force Directions Raise Questions Of How National Park Service Will Respond
Directions from the Office of Management and Budget and Office of Personnel Management on how federal agencies should craft their reduction-in-force (RIF) plans raise questions of how the National Park Service will go about cutting its ranks.
opm-omb_rif_and_reorganization_memo_2-26-2025.pdf
Parkwide Burn Ban At Great Smoky Mountains
Continued dry conditions, winds, and high fire danger in the park prompting a ban on all campfires and charcoal use, effective immediately at Great Smoky Mountains National park. The fire ban will be in effect until further notice on both the Tennessee and North Carolina sides of the park.
- By Rebecca Latson - March 1st, 2025 4:30pm
Retired National Park Service Chief Scientist Stresses Value Of Parks to Interior Secretary
In an open letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, a former chief scientist for the National Park Service asked that he highlight for President Donald Trump that America's national parks "are the embodiment of patriotism and a remarkable example of American exceptionalism."
Staffing Issues May Affect Your 2025 National Park Plans
Planning a national park trip in 2025? If there is a tour, ranger-led program, campsite, or any other park event for which you need a reservation, you’d better be prepared for staffing issues to affect some of those plans.
- By Rebecca Latson - February 28th, 2025 2:18pm
Op-Ed | Public Lands Are Part Of Our Nation’s Inheritance
America's public lands are one of the Nation's most outstanding achievements. Public lands are part of every citizen's heritage and an essential part of the national inheritance. It is especially vital to the people living in the western states, where we enjoy an abundance of public land.
- By Kurt Repanshek - February 28th, 2025 5:10am
Hawaiian Bird Species At Risk Of Extinction From Halt In Federal Funding
A federal hold on funding could upend a novel approach to preventing mosquitoes from sending a number of Hawaiian bird species into extinction.
- By Kurt Repanshek - February 27th, 2025 5:53pm
