One of the changes President Trump made possible before he left office was the renaming of New River Gorge National River in West Virginia to New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, and the expansion of Saguaro National Park in Arizona by about 1,200 acres. Both those changes were called for in the Consolidated Appropriations Act for Fiscal 2021 that Congress passed in late December and which was signed into law by Trump.
Were those changes significant? We’re exploring that question in today’s podcast with Joy Oakes, the senior director of the mid-Atlantic Region for the National Parks Conservation Association, and Kevin Dahl, the Arizona program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association.
:02 National Parks Traveler introduction
:12 Episode introduction with Kurt Repanshek
1:08 The Road Scholar - Bill Mize - The Spirit of South Dakota
1:58 Western National Parks Association promotion
2:21 Washington’s National Park Fund promotion
2:54 Friends of Acadia promotion
3:25 Discussing the name change of New River Gorge National River with NPCA's Joy Oakes.
23:51 Amaranth - Bill Mize - The Sounds of the Great Smoky Mountains
24:20 National Parks Traveler promotion
24:34 Wild Tribute promotion
24:59 Grand Teton National Park Foundation promotion
25:29 North Cascades Institute promotion
25:47 Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation promotion
26:13 Understanding the expanded areas of Saguaro National Park with NPCA's Kevin Dahl
41:39 Shee Beg Shee Mor - Nature’s Symphony - The Sounds of Acadia
41:56 Episode Closing
42:20 Orange Tree Productions promotion
42:55 Splitbeard Productions
43:07 National Parks Traveler footer
- By Kurt Repanshek - January 24th, 2021 7:00am
Comments
The basic question which Kurt somewhat poses and which Joy tap dances around: what’s the benefit of the New River’s new name if usage remains essentially unchanged, and what’s the potential downside to such a title change?
All I got was that there would now be money made available for more pavement in the form of an expansive parking lot. That’s the “development” that usually accompanies a change to National Park title. Excepting cases with substantial additional acreage previously unprotected, I can’t recall a “park” that has benefitted from its increased popularity having been previously a National River, Monument, Recreation Area, etc. New River Gorge isn’t hurting for visitors or floundering in obscurity; it’s all about attracting still (and always) more people and dollars — natural area be damned.
Contrary to the 2nd guest, no public land is “under visited” (not to be confused with under appreciated) and I would hate to see Chiricahua diminished so that the casual visitor’s experience can be expanded — and expanded fees and maintenance backlog right in step.