Amid the government shutdown, the Park Service faces trash mounds and lost revenue.
National Park Service
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It’s a mistake to keep parks open during the shutdown
Former National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis says the Trump administration is violating the park’s stewardship mandate.
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The stories that defined the West in 2018
The year in essays, analysis and investigations from across the Western U.S.
Posted inDecember 10, 2018: Critical Mass
Latest: Top National Park Service climate official resigns
Marcy Rockman cites pressure from agency.
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What does wilderness sound like?
A photographer and audio researchers document the soundscapes of remote national parks in Alaska.
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In Yosemite, two deaths raise concerns about social media
A recent study documented 259 fatalities worldwide caused by people taking selfies.
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Interior is undoing a legacy of national park stewardship in Alaska
Unethical killing of bears and wolves is not responsible wildlife management.
Posted inNovember 26, 2018: Follow the fish
Sagebrush Rebel appointed to Interior Department
Property rights lawyer Karen Budd-Falen will give legal counsel on wilderness, wildlife and many of the policies she’s spent her career attacking.
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Utah files to support Trump’s diminished national monuments
Worried that the original monument designation may stand, Utah wants to jump into the fray.
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Zinke announces mining ban near Yellowstone
Locals and some conservationists applaud; others cry favoritism by the Montanan.
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Reckoning with History: When we overcame political division
50 years ago, a functional Congress enacted four important conservation bills.
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National Parks are warming twice as fast as the U.S. overall
Climate change poses the greatest threat to some of the country’s most prized areas.
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‘Organic’ litter is not copacetic
Even orange peels be damned — don’t toss your food on the trail.
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Zinke is letting corporations profit off our national parks
A company is cashing in on prized public lands by fleecing American taxpayers.
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Wildfire suppression is a decades-old conundrum
Wilderness managers are still trying to balance the risks and necessity of fire.
Posted inAugust 20, 2018: Where the West is Moving - and Why
Flying fish; grizzly bear hunts; cougar telepathy
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
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Military jets shouldn’t shatter the peace of public lands
The piercing sounds of war training assault visitors to Olympic National Park.
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Interior ordered an end to science-forward parks policy
The Obama-era guidelines emphasized research and precaution in decision-making.
Posted inJuly 23, 2018: Pay for Prey
Latest: Park Service to remove problematic mountain goats
The rapidly multiplying population in Olympic National Park threatens visitors.
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Keep your tunes to yourself on the trail
A writer decries wilderness-destroying graffiti, litter, drones and booming speakers.