5 ms·

The great dismantling of America's national parks is under way

43 points by vanusa 7y ago

RcouF1uZ4gsC 7y ago
> This time is different and we should know, as Jon, one of this story’s authors, worked for the last 10 interior secretaries as a career NPS manager, and ultimately led the agency under Barack Obama, Previous agency director, criticizing current director.
- op00to 7y ago
  Right, so experts in the field with experience are unable to speak to the performance of other directors. Sounds like the current administration is a little over sensitive.
wcarron 7y ago
This more than mere dismantling of an institution. This is the deliberate and purposeful rape of public land for the sake of profit. The crown jewels of the natural world are being violated so that resource industries can turn new profit.
- topkai22 7y ago
  Where did you get that resource industries are able to turn a profit in the park system from the article? The only thing I saw was the privatization of campgrounds, that’s not exactly the “purposeful rape of public land.” The public lands outside the park system are under far more threat of development.
  - vanusa 7y ago
    Where did you get that resource industries are able to turn a profit in the park system from the article? From actually reading the article, rather than just skimming a line or two. For example: Then came the decisions to leave the parks open to impacts during the unfortunate government shutdown, illegally misuse entrance fees, open park trails to e-bikes, suppress climate science, kill wolf pups and bear cubs in their dens to enhance “sport hunting”, privatize campgrounds, and issue muzzle memos to park managers. With a waiver of environmental laws, bulldozers are plowing ancient cacti in national parks along the southern border in order to build a wall. Senior career park managers are likely to be replaced with unqualified political hacks. It doesn't explicitly say that these companies will turn a profit. But since the moves are basically industry-driven - we can take it as a given that that the ultimate intended goal.
  - wcarron 7y ago
    https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/bears-ears/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/bears-...
sparker72678 7y ago
I don't even think I disagree with the premise, but gosh this is poorly written and hard to read.
topkai22 7y ago
The US has a wide variety of public lands, of which the national park system represents relatively little- about 15% of total federal land. The National Park System might be getting underfunded and pressured to privatize certain aspects, but its the other public lands that have largely been treated as de facto parks are really where the threat is. The administration has a lot more legal leeway there and its not afraid to use it. See https://www.rei.com/blog/hike/your-guide-to-understanding-public-lands https://www.rei.com/blog/hike/your-guide-to-understanding-pu... for a nice primer on public land in the us.
8bitsrule 7y ago
Jan 2019: "The New Acting Interior Secretary Is An Agency Insider And Ex-Oil Lobbyist" https://www.npr.org/2019/01/02/677390503/the-new-acting-interior-secretary-is-an-agency-insider-and-ex-oil-lobbyist https://www.npr.org/2019/01/02/677390503/the-new-acting-inte... "The president's objectives actually represent the will of the people," Bernhardt said during a speech to ... the Heritage Foundation in September 2018.... Those goals include deregulation and relaxing environmental standards for oil and gas companies.... For instance, late last year he erased a chapter on climate change from the department's handbook." The order, 3360 (Sect.4 a.1) which erased that chapter: https://www.eenews.net/assets/2018/01/05/document_gw_04.pdf https://www.eenews.net/assets/2018/01/05/document_gw_04.pdf

43 points by vanusa 7y ago

> This time is different and we should know, as Jon, one of this story’s authors, worked for the last 10 interior secretaries as a career NPS manager, and ultimately led the agency under Barack Obama, Previous agency director, criticizing current director.

op00to 7y ago
Right, so experts in the field with experience are unable to speak to the performance of other directors. Sounds like the current administration is a little over sensitive.

wcarron 7y ago

This more than mere dismantling of an institution. This is the deliberate and purposeful rape of public land for the sake of profit. The crown jewels of the natural world are being violated so that resource industries can turn new profit.

topkai22 7y ago
Where did you get that resource industries are able to turn a profit in the park system from the article? The only thing I saw was the privatization of campgrounds, that’s not exactly the “purposeful rape of public land.” The public lands outside the park system are under far more threat of development.
- vanusa 7y ago
  Where did you get that resource industries are able to turn a profit in the park system from the article? From actually reading the article, rather than just skimming a line or two. For example: Then came the decisions to leave the parks open to impacts during the unfortunate government shutdown, illegally misuse entrance fees, open park trails to e-bikes, suppress climate science, kill wolf pups and bear cubs in their dens to enhance “sport hunting”, privatize campgrounds, and issue muzzle memos to park managers. With a waiver of environmental laws, bulldozers are plowing ancient cacti in national parks along the southern border in order to build a wall. Senior career park managers are likely to be replaced with unqualified political hacks. It doesn't explicitly say that these companies will turn a profit. But since the moves are basically industry-driven - we can take it as a given that that the ultimate intended goal.
- wcarron 7y ago
  https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/bears-ears/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/bears-...

sparker72678 7y ago

I don't even think I disagree with the premise, but gosh this is poorly written and hard to read.

topkai22 7y ago

The US has a wide variety of public lands, of which the national park system represents relatively little- about 15% of total federal land. The National Park System might be getting underfunded and pressured to privatize certain aspects, but its the other public lands that have largely been treated as de facto parks are really where the threat is. The administration has a lot more legal leeway there and its not afraid to use it. See https://www.rei.com/blog/hike/your-guide-to-understanding-public-lands https://www.rei.com/blog/hike/your-guide-to-understanding-pu... for a nice primer on public land in the us.

8bitsrule 7y ago

Jan 2019: "The New Acting Interior Secretary Is An Agency Insider And Ex-Oil Lobbyist" https://www.npr.org/2019/01/02/677390503/the-new-acting-interior-secretary-is-an-agency-insider-and-ex-oil-lobbyist https://www.npr.org/2019/01/02/677390503/the-new-acting-inte... "The president's objectives actually represent the will of the people," Bernhardt said during a speech to ... the Heritage Foundation in September 2018.... Those goals include deregulation and relaxing environmental standards for oil and gas companies.... For instance, late last year he erased a chapter on climate change from the department's handbook." The order, 3360 (Sect.4 a.1) which erased that chapter: https://www.eenews.net/assets/2018/01/05/document_gw_04.pdf https://www.eenews.net/assets/2018/01/05/document_gw_04.pdf