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Democrat Cites Economic Impacts In Calling For Government Shutdown To Be Lifted

U.S. Raúl M. Grijalva, who is expected to chair the House Natural Resources Committee in the new Congress, said the longer the partial government shutdown continues the more economic damage will be done to the National Park Service as well as the tourism sector aligned with the outdoors.

Unease Hangs Over National Parks As Partial Shutdown Continues

Sinking morale among the National Park Service ranks and accumulating human waste and garbage are just some of the symptoms of the ongoing government shutdown that has left many national parks open but without adequate staffing. Not so visible are the impacts being suffered in long-term environmental monitoring, work on visitor management plans and environmental impact statements, and even potential setbacks to the hiring of next summer's seasonal rangers.

Sequoia And Kings Canyon National Parks Closed Due To Health And Safety Issues

Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks were closed entirely Wednesday evening by National Park Service officials due to unsanitary conditions that were creating health and safety concerns. The two parks, in California's Sierra Nevada, are believed to have become the first in the National Park System to be entirely closed due to visitation problems since the partial government shutdown began nearly two weeks ago.

Illegal Camping In Death Valley National Park, Anonymous Ranger Fears For Yosemite

Beautiful desert views. No crowds. What's not to like about camping in Death Valley National Park, especially when there are no rangers about to ticket you for camping illegally? Meanwhile, as the partial government shutdown continues to show the ugly side of keeping national parks open without adequate National Park Service staff, one Yosemite National Park ranger voiced concerns about managing crowds with a skeleton staff.

Birding In The Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve

A light drizzle created a gray sky when my mom and I hopped out of the car at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Kansas. The flint hills rolled all around us, differing shades of green fading in and out of the distance. Though the prairie used to cover 170 million acres, only 4 percent still exists, 11,000 acres of which are within the preserve.

UPDATED | Traveler's View: Keeping Parks Open During Government Shutdown Is Bad Idea

Keeping most units of the National Park System open during the partial government shutdown is a bad idea, as accumulating human waste and garbage poses sanitation issues and some visitors are taking advantage of the lack of presence of rangers to do what they want, regardless of regulations.