Case Study: The National Park Service

The National Park Service (NPS) is a notable government agency whose responsibility is to manage and protect national parks, monuments, and other recreational facilities. The main objective of the NPS is not only to preserve historical information, but to conduct a setting in which the nation’s citizens are provided with the opportunity to become concerned or intrigued by the historical significance of these national parks, monuments, and more. Given the task to manage these national memorials also comes with the responsibility of preserving the sites. The NPS is responsible for maintaining the parks’ utilities and infrastructure, in which can become exceptionally costly. Even with visitor fees, the NPS is not receiving enough money to upkeep these parks and monuments, which can result in America losing significant visual reminders of history and the parks’ educational programs as well.

National parks are part of the foundation and history of the beginning of America. The NPS is an organization that fights for the national parks and is trying to preserve them. Although the national parks may seem like land with no meaning taking up space that could be used for more construction and modernization, they deserve to be a priority because of the history they hold from the beginning of our great nation and because of the recreational value they provide to the public.

Growing up in a family who enjoys the outdoors, national parks and forests have been a staple for travel and outdoor leisure. This can hold true for anyone seeking to enjoy outdoor fun. The National Parks Service provides services that are dedicated to preserving and maintaining forests, public land, and natural beauties. Conservation of forests began in 1876, yet a department was never officially founded until 1905. The National Parks Service was then created in 1916.

In 2016, the National Park Service (NPS) celebrated 100 years of preservation and conservation of our nation’s parks, monuments, and historical sites. Currently, the federal government has proposed significant proposed budget cuts to the National Park Service. If the government makes these cuts, then Americans could lose the national parks along with the beauty, culture, and history that comes with them. This would happen because the NPS would lose most of its funding that is needed in order to keep the national parks well­preserved. Investing in the NPS should be a priority in our nation because it provides educational programs, unites all ages and races, and preserves and conserves the national parks.

the role the national park will play into the future to provide benefit and relevant services to Canadians and a commitment to work with communities, organizations and individuals for a sustainable future and to sustain or improve the ecological integrity of the park.

The park has been threatened by logging as well as non-native species. The NPS has gone to large lengths to keep this park protected, pushing for further legislation for protection to goto a federal authority. Making this a priority has had many payoffs and has been a big factor on the result that the park is in today. This park has suffered from budget cuts and actively tries to raise awareness and increase public interest. The NPS is partnering with other organizations to provide better service such as transit and educational opportunities to visitors. Making these promises has make their approval rating go up. The NPS also has one of the highest approval ratings of all government agencies.

To understand the critical needs across the national park system, the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation worked together to identify priority programs and initiatives in need of funding that will strengthen and shape the national parks for the next 100 years. Projects include regional opportunities and large, national-level investments like wildlife conservation, trail rehabilitation, and the 21stCentury Conservation Service

I overcome failure at my job in the Youth Conservation Corps of the National Park Service at Monocacy National Battlefield. This position often requires initiative, quick decision making and physical strength. The National Park Service, especially park maintenance, is a field with jobs primarily occupied by men. This tells me that somewhere along the way, someone of my gender was told, or told themselves that they could not complete the work that I do as efficiently as a man could. When they simply continue to adopt the mindset that they are not strong or competent enough to perform manual labor and neglect to even try the job, they have already failed due to their lack of attempt. I go to work and work manually in order to set a new standard

So, where is the disconnect? Further into her article, Bilmes mentions, “But NPS gets its funding from a combination of visitor fees and an annual congressional appropriation, which total some $3 billion” (Bilmes). That leaves $89 billion that the parks are not receiving. Therefor, the NPS does not have the adequate funds required to undertake upkeep and repair projects that it must in order to revitalize interest in the national

This year the National Park Service celebrates its 100th anniversary. Their mandate is to "conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein” in an unimpaired condition so that they might be enjoyed by present and future generations." I interviewed Park Service employee Daniel Craighead, an Occupational Safety and Health Specialist, to discuss how occupational safety and training supports the Park Services mandate.

The protection of these parks are crucial and government funding to keep them running is a smart investment option. John Garder states, “In 2014, the National Park System received over 292 million recreation visits. Park visitors supported nearly $30 billion in economic activity and nearly 277,000 private-sector jobs. Each federal dollar invested in the National Park Service generates $10 in economic activity, a tremendous return on investment to local economies.” Multiple professionals in the degree of policy and business, from Solutions, a popular magazine wrote, “Research shows that protected areas are the most effective—in some situations the only—way of maintaining natural ecosystems in the face of development pressures, rapid agricultural expansion, and a rush to exploit mineral resources.”

The ideas on how to manage parks are varied. Based on a great spike in usage with population growth as a primary contributing factor, there is a good deal of information and debate on whether parks are a right and should be protected or are places that need to stand on their own. Information on this topic is easily found to debate. Experts abound in Colorado as such a great deal of our economy is based on tourism and use of the land. Much of the research on the state of Colorado and its parks is readily available due to having a populace that is among the most active and healthy in the United States and not only values the access to outdoor recreation but demands it. The peer reviewed articles tend to be based on the national parks, and they are tougher to find; however, based on issue of the fee hikes being raised they seem to be be possible to use to tie into the discussion without

Conservation: Yellowstone is extraordinarily large, with 290 waterfalls, 17 rivers and acreage spanning across portions of three states. According to Yellowstone Superintendent Dan Wenk, his park “is at the heart of the largest intact ecosystem in the temperate zone in the United States, if not the world” (interview). It’s called the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) and within its borders lay two national parks (Grand Teton and Yellowstone), four national wildlife refuges, and seven national forests. This important biological reserve is the largest protected area in the lower 48 states and provides critical habitat for some of the world’s most iconic wildlife. Unfortunately, many plant and animal species today face endangerment, mainly because their natural habitats are being destroyed. National parks work to conserve wildlife by safeguarding these habitats that provide a safe space for wildlife to breed and survive.

More than 900 species known on planet Earth have gone extinct (Endangered). Some, however, have been saved from extinction. One big contributor to this cause is the National Park Service, an organization founded in 1916 to protect the remaining wild places in our world. Now the National Park Service preserves over 6000 areas throughout the world, with over 275 million visitors each year (United, “What”; National, “National”). The National Park Service plays an essential role in preserving wildlife on Earth by teaching and acting to preserve species.

National parks are a government institution meant to preserve the natural wonders of America’s landscapes. Established as the first national park in the U.S. by Congress in 1872, Yellowstone National Park was intended as “a public park or pleasuring ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.” The Secretary of the Interior, along with other governmental departments like the War Department and the Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture later worked to authorize additional national parks and monuments throughout much of the West. President Woodrow Wilson created the National Park Service in 1916, which was responsible for protecting and managing the national parks already created, as well as those yet to be established. Once