Musings About The Parks | Things I Worry About

We're not two years into Donald Trump's second term as president and there already are more things to worry about concerning national parks and protected areas than one might expect from a four-year term.

For instance:

• Roughly a quarter of the National Park Service staff has been lost since January 20, 2025, and it's expected further cuts and staff reorganization are coming. What Park Service roles will be further reduced or eliminated?
• Congress sent to President Trump legislation to lift a 20-year-moratorium on mining around the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness, an icon in the National Wilderness Preservation System, and he signed it into law April 27. A similar move is expected around Chaco Culture National Historical Park in New Mexico.
• The so-called God Squad summoned by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth agreed to erase Endangered Species Act protections for marine life in the Gulf of Mexico in the guise of "national security," a move that could push the Rice's whale to extinction.
• Lodging rates in the National Park System are soaring out of reach for many hoping for a multi-day stay in a park. A night in a Roosevelt Cabin at Olympic National Park ranges from $481-$514, a cabin at Kalaloch in the park could range from $328-$843, a night in a cozy Western cabin at Bryce Canyon National Park can range from $294.95 per night to more than $400, depending on when you book and what discounts are offered. 
• Not only has the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service never designated critical habitat for the Florida panther, a woefully endangered species, but it seemingly has no issue with dicing up the habitat that remains for developments.
• The National Park Service under this administration has evidently abandoned its mission statement when it comes to preserving park lands, directing questions about possible impacts to Big Bend National Park from a proposed border wall there to the "Department of War."
• More access to hunting and trapping in the National Park System has silently been approved by park superintendents since Interior Secretary Doug Burgum in January told them to open more areas to the activities.
  
  While Interior staff told us that the regulatory relaxation "advances a commonsense approach to public land management by expanding access to hunting and fishing opportunities where it can be done safely and responsibly," a "managed" hunt at Cumberland Island National Seashore back in January led to the death of a 52-year-old man accidentally shot by another hunter. Details of an ensuing investigation have yet to surface. If park goers can't be protected in a managed hunt, how will this new easing of regulations affect public safety?
• The administration moved this week to toss aside the Public Lands Rule, which put conservation on equal footing with mining, logging, and grazing of public lands. Is that going to be helpful in protecting the resources, air quality, water quality, and visitor experience at national parks?
• Public education is so necessary in the National Park System. Visitors need to know how resources are faring, if they're healthy or declining. So why aren't snorkelers at Biscayne National Park informed about the dire state of the Florida Reef Tract that runs through the park, and instructed to use reef-safe sunscreen?
• Why doesn't the Park Service pay closer attention to the condition of visitor facilities in the parks? While some parks do a great job in this area, others not so much. For instance, some cabins at Lewis Mountain in Shenandoah National Park have chinks in the walls that bring in drafts, daylight, and insects from the outside, ill-fitting doors, and are generally dark and dingy. Part of the answer, of course, is that park staff has been drastically cut back and Congress won't properly fund the agency. Watch for more on Shenandoah lodgings in the days ahead from Rebecca Latson, who spent the past week in the park.

Without question, there are many, many things that are uplifting about exploring the National Park System. But if the Park Service truly is going to preserve these places and their natural resources for future generations, it really needs a lot more help from Congress and presidential administrations.