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In Our View: Parks Need Protection

National Park Week good time to remind Congress system needs more money

The Columbian
Published: April 21, 2016, 6:01am

As it commemorates National Park Week and offers free admission at more than 400 sites across the country, the National Park Service sits at a crossroads.

The park service, which oversees facilities such as the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, is facing a $12 billion bill for maintenance that has been deferred over the years. At Fort Vancouver, according to the service’s report for fiscal year 2015, that deferred maintenance totaled $24.7 million. At Mount Rainier National Park, the number was $285 million, and at Crater Lake National Park in Southern Oregon the need was $84 million. As outdoors author Heather Hansen wrote for The Denver Post: “I’ve listened while disheartened interpretive rangers have mourned projects and improvements now so far on the back burner that the rangers’ retirements will come first.”

All of which represents a disappointing state of affairs in what should be a celebratory centennial year for the National Park Service. The organization was signed into law in 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson, and since then it has reflected many of the United States’ finest attributes in capturing the nation’s history and wondrous beauty.

The National Park Service has helped preserve land for the benefit of the people — all the people — rather than allowing for the selling off of scenic areas or the parceling out of vistas to the highest bidder. As Hansen wrote: “The National Park Service came on the scene largely in response to intrusions into parks including damming, logging, grazing, poaching, even stagecoach robberies. A small, outraged group of park lovers led the charge for a federal agency devoted to protecting parks and to expanding the national park system.”

All of this seems particularly relevant these days with small, outraged groups of people questioning the efficacy of having the federal government hold land on the public’s behalf. Those debates extend well beyond the National Park Service, yet the agency represents the benefits that come with easy access to public lands. In Washington, that means protection for Mount Rainier National Park; conservation of the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area; and the creation of the new Manhattan Project National Historic Site at Hanford.

There is, undoubtedly, a demand for such sites. Last year, national parks welcomed a record 300 million visitors — not only from the United States, but also from around the world. According to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, whose department oversees the National Park Service, parks generated $32 billion for their local economies. “Taxpayers saw a 10-to-1 return on investment,” said Jewell, former president and CEO of Recreational Equipment Inc., or REI. “As a businessperson, I can tell you that’s pretty darn good.”

Because of National Park Week, admission to park-service sites is free through Sunday, and extensive celebrations are planned for August on the occasion of the service’s anniversary. While there will be many proclamations this year about how wonderful the National Park Service is, the hope is that Congress will provide more than lip service during this centennial year. Lawmakers approved $547 million for maintenance in the current budget year — a 28 percent increase over the previous year but still not enough to cover a growing need.

On many levels, national parks are a worthy investment for American taxpayers. It is time for Congress to commit to a thriving second century for the National Park Service.

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