Mary Gilmore, Staff Writer
The government has been shut down for over a month now, leaving federal jobs and employees in shambles. National parks are heavily affected by a government shutdown due to their reliance on federal funding and staffing to operate.
When a shutdown occurs, thousands of National Park Service (NPS) employees are furloughed, leaving parks without staff to manage visitor safety, maintain facilities, enforce regulations, and protect the natural and cultural resources. The jobs of rangers, custodians, administrative staff, restroom maintenance, and emergency response are all halted, turning the parks into chaos.
The NPS developed a 2025 contingency plan for the government shutdown. Within this plan, visitor services are scaled back significantly. Parks will only maintain basic sanitation and safety operations if that park is supported by recreation or donation funds. Parks will likely close areas vulnerable to damage or areas with common safety risks. Websites and social media outlets will not be updated, and any events that require staff to be present will be suspended. If partners of a specific national park don’t require NPS resources, then they may continue operations. The plan also states that third-party donations are allowed to be made to parks to help support limited operations.
The NPS Organic Act states that the purpose of the NPS is to “conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life” and “to provide for [their] enjoyment… in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”
That’s why the contingency plan is in place, to attempt to reduce any damage while the parks are unstaffed. While this plan has helped in some areas, the effect of the shutdown has been too much on several parks.
Allyson Mathis, a retired NPS employee, was hiking at Arches National Park when she found graffiti on the rocks. Mathis spoke in an interview with ABC4, “To me, it looked like it happened since the last rain, and so that would definitely be during the shutdown. The parks aren’t being patrolled the way they normally would be, and they’re not being protected the way they normally should be.”
A major issue in California has been illegal activity occurring in the parks. Yosemite National Park has had several campgrounds being overrun by squatters who are not respecting the area. Additionally, still within Yosemite, there has been illegal base-jumping by individuals who were attempting to take advantage of the lack of supervision in the park.
An additional obstacle with the shutdown of the national parks was discussed in a North Carolina State University interview with Lincoln Larson, an associate professor of parks, recreation and tourism management. “In many parts of rural America, national parks are major economic engines that, through outdoor recreation and tourism, power local economies. These gateway communities depend on park visitation to survive and thrive. Many park workers also live in communities near the parks, and their salaries breathe life into these towns. When parks shut down, many of these economic benefits are lost, making life much tougher for people living nearby.”
America’s most beautiful and protected lands are falling apart as this shutdown drags on. The best ways to support the national parks and the NPS during this time include donations, asking for the parks to be closed, and minimizing your impact on the parks.
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