Without question, the 2017 arrival of the Trump administration has had the worst impact on the National Park System in recent decades.
While there were many newsworthy events across the system in 2017, none has had greater impact than President Trump and his Interior secretary, Ryan Zinke. Find that questionable? Consider the following:
- President Trump has moved to cut the size of Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bears Ears national monuments in half and break them into smaller pieces. If that action holds up in court, what might future presidents do to other monuments?
- President Trump spurred the “alt” movement by criticizing climate change tweets from Badlands National Park, questioning Park Service estimates that the size of his inaugural crowd paled to those that turned out for President Obama’s two inaugurations, and his perceived biases towards women and minorities.
- Secretary Zinke maligned his far-flung workforce by claiming that at least one-third are working against him, and the Park Service specifically by saying the agency is good at cleaning restrooms, but not managing campgrounds.
- Rather than calling on Congress to improve funding for the Park Service, the Interior secretary proposed a “surge pricing” scheme for 17 national parks that will have little if any effect on raising funds to slice away at the Park Service’s $11.3 billion maintenance backlog.
- President Trump has proposed, and Secretary Zinke endorsed, a budget for the National Park Service that would cut nearly $400 million annually and some 1,200 employees.
- Secretary Zinke has told the Park Service to reconsider the use of greasy baits for bear hunting in Alaska preserves and directed that the agency pull out of efforts to craft a grizzly bear recovery plan for the North Cascades Ecosystem.
- The Trump administration, with Secretary Zinke leading the way, reversed the Obama administration's opposition to a more than 7-mile-long line of transmission towers running near Historic Jamestowne and Colonial National Historical Park in Virginia.
- Nearly a year into his administration, President Trump has not nominated a new director for the National Park Service.
While Secretary Zinke has pledged to bolster morale across Interior and within the National Park Service, his support of the president’s budget proposal, his position that The Antiquities Act has been misused by past presidents to designate national monuments, and his heavy handed demand that the superintendent of Joshua Tree National Park fly to Washington, D.C., to be dressed down for climate change statements made on the park’s Twitter feed, go in the opposite direction.
With the expectation that President Trump early in 2018 will announce additional proclamations aimed at changing boundaries and uses of national monuments, this story will not end on December 31, 2017.
Other significant stories that touched the park system and Park Service in 2017 included:
Rep. Zinke Confirmed As Interior Secretary
Congressman Ryan Zinke of Montana on Wednesday was confirmed as Interior secretary by the U.S.Senate, prompting a mixed reaction of caution, concern, and exhilaration.
Hiring Freeze Exemptions Help National Park Service In Short Term, But Long-Term Concerns Persist
Exemptions to President Trump's hiring freeze for federal employees will allow the National Park Service to address seasonal and short-term positions, but uncertainty remains over the size of the agency's permanent workforce and whether it will be sufficient to manage the more than 400 units of the National Park System, a National Parks Conservation Association official said Wednesday.
OIG: National Park Service Didn't Exploit Trump Inauguration Crowd Size
National Park Service personnel did not exploit the size of the crowd at President Donald Trump's inauguration, nor did agency staff discuss with the media a call from the president to acting Park Service Director Mike Reynolds that day, an Interior Department investigation has concluded.
Trump Administration Orders Interior Department To Shut Down Twitter Accounts
A few national park twitter accounts, at least, went silent Friday afternoon after the newly installed Trump administration ordered the Interior Department to idle all its accounts.
National Park Service Back On Twitter After Apologizing
The National Park Service returned to Twitter on Saturday after apologizing for tweets on Friday that apparently irked the Trump administration.
President Trump Signs Order Directing Interior Department Review Of National Monuments
President Trump, sounding as if he's ready to transfer federal lands back to the states, on Wednesday signed an executive order directing the Interior Department to review national monuments designated by the last three presidents, going back to 1996 when President Clinton established the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah via his authority under the Antiquities Act.
Among Traveler's coverage:
President Trump Issues Proclamation To Shrink National Monuments, Tees Off Legal Battle
A handful of hours after President Trump on Monday issued a proclamation to chop 1 million acres off the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah a lawsuit was filed to prevent that from happening. Other groups were expected to file a similar lawsuit over the president's move to reduce Bears Ears National Monument, also in Utah, by 1 million acres.
Dueling Legal Opinions Offered In Battle Over National Monuments
Two legal analyses have been added to the debate over whether President Trump can unilaterally rescind the designation of Bears Ears National Monument in Utah and, not surprisingly, they reach different conclusions.
Poll Says Westerners Want Public Lands Protected, But Will It Matter?
Polling in seven Western states shows a strong majority of voters value clean air and water and outdoor recreation above energy development on public lands. And while the results showed eight in 10 voters want to retain, not decommission, national monuments, Utah officials were working to ask the Trump administration to rescind the Bears Ears National Monument designation and shrink the size of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
Imagine a national park where you can hunt and trap the wildlife, where livestock grazing is not just permitted but also "enhanced," and a presidentially appointed management council tells the National Park Service how to run the park.
Lawsuit Filed Over Administration's National Monument Review
Leaked memos and a senator's comments regarding Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's review of 27 national monuments lack the requisite transparency over the Trump administration's efforts to shrink some monuments, according to a legal organization that has filed a lawsuit seeking more details on the secretary's review process.
Interior Secretary Vigorously Defends Actions On National Monuments
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Tuesday vigorously defended the Trump administration's move to reduce by 2 million acres the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase national monuments in Utah, saying previous presidents greatly misused their authority under The Antiquities Act. The secretary, in response to a reporter's question, also called Patagonia officials liars for their claim that President Trump "stole your land."
Secretary Zinke's Positions On National Monuments Link Him More Closely To Pinchot Than Roosevelt
Though he casts himself in the image of Theodore Roosevelt, by his actions Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke seems closer to Gifford Pinchot, the country's first chief of the U.S. Forest Service who viewed natural resources as existing to be consumed by people.
Faced with a survey showing that nearly 40 percent of the National Park Service workforce has been the victim of sexual harassment, intimidation, or discrimination, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Friday promised immediate and lasting reform, saying "there’s an expectation of the Park Service that not only that they can and should be the greatest stewards of our lands, but also they should be the greatest stewards of our values."
Among Traveler's coverage:
OIG: Women Harassed In Yellowstone National Park's Maintenance Division
A "good old boy system" that spewed inappropriate comments and behaviors toward female coworkers existed in the Maintenance Division at Yellowstone National Park, according to an investigation, which also found that the atmosphere continued "because of the actions, or inaction, of supervisors.Despite the National Park Service's pledge to take a zero tolerance approach to sexual harassment incidents, a park superintendent accused of inappropriate behavior against a female employee was transferred to a larger park and given a cash bonus, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.Working in the wide open spaces managed by the Interior Department, whether your job is in a national park, riding the range managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, or counting ducks in a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge, places you at higher odds than most other Interior bureaus of being harassed in one form or another.
Much like a homeowner who puts off "until next year" repairs to that leaky roof or well-aged furnace, Congress for years largely has turned a blind eye to growing maintenance issues around the National Park System. While two U.S. senators have introduced legislation to tackle that backlog, estimated at $12 billion, their bill alone won't get the job done.
Hurricanes Batter Florida and Caribbean National Parks
Hurricanes Irma and Maria delivered a one-two punch to park system units in Florida and the Caribbean, closing some for months due to downed vegetation, damaged and eroded roads, and damaged and destroyed buildings.
Among Traveler's coverage:
National Park Service Trying To Locate Owners Of Boats Damaged By Hurricanes In Caribbean
The National Park Service is working in coordination with U.S. Coast Guard and Federal Emergency Management Agency to address damaged vessels that have been displaced in the Caribbean due to recent hurricane activity.Long, Slow Recovery Predicted For Some National Parks In Caribbean
Damage inflicted by the one-two punch of Hurricanes Irma and Maria could keep Virgin Islands National Park virtually closed for six months to a year, according to the National Park Service's Caribbean superintendent. When the five other parks in the Caribbean reopen depends largely on when the islands' power grids are restored and fuel becomes available, he added.
Slowly Putting The Pieces Back Together At Everglades National Park
Everglades National Park looks like ... it was hit head-on by a hurricane.Island-Wide Curfew In Effect As St. John, Virgin Islands National Park Recover From Hurricane Maria
An island-wide curfew was in effect Thursday as St. John and Virgin Islands National Park started to dig out from the aftermath of two hurricanes, Irma and Maria, in the past two weeks.
Congressman Introduces Legislation To Extensively Rewrite Antiquities Act
A Utah congressman long unhappy with the authority given presidents under The Antiquities Act to establish national monuments has introduced legislation that would extensively rewrite the century-old act. If enacted, the rewrite would limit the purposes for which monuments could be created, require environmental review, and allow presidents to reduce the size of monuments without congressional action.
A Solar Eclipse Cast Its Shadow Across The National Park System
From Oregon through Wyoming and across the country to South Carolina, a total solar eclipse cast a dark shadow across parks in August.
The Strain Of Overcrowding Spreads In The National Park System
There should be little doubt that the National Park Service's Find Your Park campaign for its centennial in 2016 was a resounding success, with overall visitation up nearly 8 percent to 331 million, setting a record for the third consecutive year. But those visitation levels are having adverse impacts on both park resources and the national park experience in some corners of the National Park System.
Among Traveler's coverage:
Crowding Issues In National Parks Drawing Concern And Brainstorming
Key to ongoing debates into how to manage seemingly ever growing visitation at Zion and Yellowstone, Yosemite and Acadia, and Glacier and Grand Canyon national parks is the notion of how national parks should be preserved and protected for future generations. It's a natural conversation in light of what one might call overcrowding of these places.
Acadia National Park Officials Debating How To Deal With Crowds
As discussion into how to handle soaring crowds to the National Park System is beginning to turn into planning, one user group -- local residents -- is wondering how it will be affected by the resulting approach to overcrowding.
Yellowstone National Park Expands Human Footprint To Handle Crowds
Yellowstone National Park officials, struggling to deal with greater and greater visitation year after year, have responded by increasing the human footprint with a new parking lot, trail, and hardened overlook of Grand Prismatic Spring.
Motor Vehicle Accidents In Yellowstone Skyrocketing
With more and more visitors heading to Yellowstone National Park, it might be reasonable that there would be an increase in motor vehicle accidents. But the increase has been incredible, with a nearly 900 percent increase in vehicle rollovers in 2016 vs. 2014.Huge Increase In Tour Bus Traffic At Yellowstone National ParkThey're ponderous, pavement clogging, and capable of disgorging more than 50 visitors at a time; leg-stretching, camera-toting pedestrians who often will swarm en masse onto the boardwalks ringing Yellowstone National Park's geyser basins. And in 2016, those commercial tour buses would have stretched roughly 108 miles if you had parked them end-to-end-to-end.
Zion National Park Considering Reservation System To Manage Crowds
In a move that could signal the future of your national park vacation, Zion National Park officials are thinking of moving to a reservation system for entry into the iconic red rock cathedral to protect resources and ensure the enjoyment of visitors.
Rise In National Park Visitation Last Year Produced $35 Billion Economic Boost
A bullish report on 2017 visitation to the National Park System was met with both welcome and concern, as parks across the country are gearing up for a busy summer with ailing infrastructure and staff struggling to handle the crowds.
Good and Bad News Pertaining To The Park Service’s Maintenance Backlog
A $227 million plan to make critical repairs to the Arlington Memorial Bridge in Washington, D.C., will take a quarter of the National Park Service's annual construction fund budget and lead to delays in construction projects elsewhere in the National Park System.
Report: Great Smoky Mountains National Park Staff Not Negligent In Battling Deadly Chimney Tops 2 Fire
A deadly fire fed by kindling-dry forests and whipped out of control by hurricane-force winds at Great Smoky Mountains National Park "overwhelmed" the park staff's ability to fight it, according to an independent review of the blaze that killed 14 in neighboring communities.
Tennessee Drops Charges Against Teens In Connection With Deadly Chimney Tops Fire
Saying they could not directly tie the Chimney Tops 2 fire in Great Smoky Mountains National Park with the subsequent fires in and around Gatlinburg, Tennessee, that killed 14 people last year, Tennessee authorities have dropped charges against two teenagers.
National Park Service Scuttles Director's Order Pertaining To Natural Resource Protection
Among the last tasks National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis took before retiring was signing Director's Order 100, which updated the agency’s guidelines for stewardship and reaffirmed its “predominant” duty to protect natural and cultural resources. Last week acting-National Park Service Director Michael Reynolds rescinded that order, reportedly at the Interior Department's direction.
EPA Revives Possibility Of Massive Mine Near Lake Clark National Park And Preserve
As expected, the Trump administration is proposing that a company that wants to sink a massive copper, gold, and molybdenum mine not far from Lake Clark National Park and Preserve and near the headwaters of Bristol Bay in Alaska be allowed to apply for the necessary permits.
New National Park Senior Pass Price -- $80 -- Coming On August 28
If you're 62 or older and don't have a Senior Pass to the National Park System, or will turn 62 before August 28, you might want to buy one before the price rockets from $10 for the rest of your life to $80 on that day.
President Obama Designates Three National Monuments To Preserve Cultural History
President Obama moved Thursday to preserve three chapters of American history by designating national monuments to tell the nation's Civil Rights and Reconstruction stories.
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Comments
Perhaps we are at least a little fortunate that trumpf spends so much time golfing. So far, he's spent a full 25% of his days since inauguration on the links. Can you imagine the damage he'd be able to do if he was a full-time destroyer?
i have to disagree with some of these assertions, particularly that the Alt-NPS was caused by Trump tweets... The Alt-NPS appeared before those tweets and before the Trump Administration issued and edicts, though at the time they claimed it was his edict...the North Dakota NPS Confederates started the Alt-NPS and blamed Trump but they actually jumped the gun reacting to Obama officials communications. A good investigative Jounalist would get these details correct. In addition, the Alt-NPS has been aided greatly by Russian trolls. I for one hoped Trump/Zinke would use NPS as a source of employment in a CCC fashion, but after the Alt-NPS and other NPS Confederates gave the the one finger salute before their first move. I tried to warn NPS. While I have not researched the monument shrinkage, you fail to mention this land remains in federal control as it was before and is now - they are not giving up much, just reversing the unDemocratic over-reach of the Obama Adminstration, which cause us to get Trump in the first place. Trump is the result, not the problem. Now let’s use democracy to put down the Confederates and rebuild the best National Park Service in the world.
Alt-National Park Service was founded on January 26.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/AltUSNationalParkService/about/?ref=page_int...
NPR on January 25, 2017:
Some of the statements in that article are just plain wrong...IE fake news. If people would just look at facts instead of going straight to emotion we would all be better off.
Please, anonymous, tell us which ones are "just plain wrong," and if you're right, we'll happily correct them. At the same time, please identify yourself.
I simply agree with the secretary. Others don't. I have visited 41of the 61 or 62 national parks. I have also visited over 100 sites in the NPS. Like all government there is a lot of waste. Cutting back will force them to be more aware of it. I also want the parks to bring in more money. I believe this is the only way to keep them forever. Most people in this country don't really care about them enough to spend money on them. If they can't support themselves they will go away. I also have plans to visit the other 20 or so I need. Looking forward to it.