The Problems Facing the US National Park System
Like other environmental organizations and agencies, insufficient funding is a major concern. (Kaufman and Franz, 1993, 475). The increase in visitors to national parks has increased the amount of wear an tear that park facilities sustain each year, and this increases the amount of repair requests and new structures that need to built annually. However, with a limited fund, these repairs and improvements often have to take a back seat to more pressing issues. While improvements to roads, trails, and facilities are important to the enjoyment of the park, the amount of park rangers available helps to protect the safety of park visitors. With shortages in funding the number of rangers at these parks is declining which impairs public safety.
Wildlife at national parks is also threatened by the increasing popularity of these areas. More visitors means that there are more people approaching wild animals to take pictures and watch their “natural behaviors.” While these observations don’t necessarily harm the animals if done discretely from a distance, there are a few irresponsible individuals who take risks to get close to animals. They harass the animals and provoke them in order to get an action shot or to prove their “manhood.” This practice not only puts the human at risk for injury or death, but it could also stress the animal and cause it to be injured. As funding is lost, private landowners may buy portions of land that once belonged to the park and set up cattle grazing areas, or put the land to some other use. The sale of national land depletes vital habitat for a wide variety of animals and increases the chances that diseases will be spread from domesticated animals to wildlife, or from wildlife to domesticated animals.
The concession system is another issue that is plaguing the national park system. (Kaufman and Franz, 1993, 478). In this case, private companies bid to sell their products in the park to visitors. While they are able to monopolize a market, and they are allowed to operate on national park property, they only return 25% of the money earned to the government. This percentage doesn’t make up for the amount of pollution they create from the tourists littering, or from the environmental impacts of their concession stand and sales.
One big concern is the potential exercising of mining claims on national parks. For example in the Grand Basin National Park in Nevada there are 247mining claims that still exist. If any of these claims were to be developed, it could dramatically impact the health of the ecosystems within the park, and it could threaten the health and sustainability of the park.
Atmospheric pollution is yet another issue that national parks face. Acid rain caused by industrial and automobile exhaust impacts the health of water systems within national parks, and harms delicate organisms like amphibians and fish. Smog is also a problem that impacts the health and enjoyability of national parks. With more people visiting parks, vehicle traffic has increased and so has auto emissions near and in parks. This creates smog which can obscure the vistors’ views and impede their ability to breathe comfortably within the park.
National parks not only have to worry about internal factors that impact the parks health and operation, but they also have to worry about activities that are on adjacent lands. (Kaufman and Franz, 1993, 479). Mining, logging, and drilling for oil are all activities that produce pollution that can harm the delicate ecosystems within a national park. Air pollution from industrial and automobile exhaust, water pollution from slucebox mining, and deforestation can cause soil erosion that can contaminate the national park’s water supply. Agricultural development around national parks can also impact the health and stability of a national park. Domesticated animals can catch and spread diseases from and to wild animals. Also wildlife that cross out of the park to a private piece of property risk the threat of being killed by the rancher or land owner, or even by being hit and killed by traffic.
Yellowstone National Park is perhaps one of the most negatively impacted national parks by these issues. It is one of the most popular national parks and it receives hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. They face trail erosion, trampled vegetation, and animal harassment. Also they are near prime petroleum fields that are currently being drilled and pumped. Air pollution, soil pollution and water pollution are all real threats that this park has to face, as well as potential negative effects of natural pollutants that could cause injuries to human visitors. Yellowstone is also in the heart of cattle country, and they face an on-going border battle with beef barons. The issue over the right to shoot and kill park animals like bison, bears, and wolves if they cross out of the park and onto private property. The spread of tuberculosis is also a real threat wit bison and cattle interactions.
References
Kaufman, Donald G. and Franz, Cecilia M. (1993). Biosphere 2000�Protecting our Global Environment. Dubuque, IA: Kendal/Hunt Publishing
