A North Carolina newspaper has, figuratively, tossed some gasoline on the simmering dispute over the National Park Service's failure to produce an off-road vehicle management plan for Cape Hatteras National Seashore. In an editorial the Raleigh News and Observer says the Park Service is deferring to ORVers to the detriment of wildlife.
A substantial surge in sulfur dioxide gases being vented in the Halema'uma'u Crater at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has prompted park officials to prepare an evacuation plan. For now, though, trade winds and rain seem to be safely dispersing the gases.
With all the debate lately over whether visitors should be allowed to carry weapons in national parks, much has been said about the need for protection against wild animals, bears in particular. Well, studies show bear spray is a much more effective deterrent than a speeding bullet.
The National Park Service and the Grand Portage Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa have agreed to work together on efforts to protect park and tribal fishery resources in Lake Superior from a deadly fish disease known as viral hemorrhagic septicemia, or VHS.
The flood unleashed through Grand Canyon National Park earlier this month appears to have been a stunning success, with sandbars and beaches created as scientists had predicted. Whether it will be repeated on a regular basis is questionable, though.
Olympic National Park officials have released the final General Management Plan, a hefty, two-volume document that will guide park operations for the next 15-20 years. Within its 950 pages the document discusses park expansion and improvements at Hurricane Ridge.