National parks are in trouble. According to park officials, there is an $11 billion backlog of work that needs to be done. That means there is a need for more park benches, roads, charcoal grills and outdoor trash cans.
As anyone involved with a park knows, parks are usually on the lower rung when it comes to funding in national and even state or municipal budgets. It's the first thing to be cut. On the national level, we spend quite a bit of money on federal subsidies, studies and submarines and at the end of the day that leaves little money for park tables, paint or maintenance programs.
The irony is that there are a whole lot more people who will visit a national park than crawl inside one of those submarines. In 2014, there were nearly 300 million visitors to national parks. That's quite a bit of use. That's quite a few people hiking trails, camping under the stars, cooking out on park grills and enjoying time with family, friends and new acquaintances they meet along the way.
To help renew interest in national parks, and perhaps get Congress to put some bucks behind preserving them, the National Park Service has launched a campaign called "Find Your Park." (Is it a coincidence there is only one letter difference between "find" and "fund?")
This is reportedly only the third major initiative of this type launched by NPS. The others were in 1915 when parks were in bad shape and the NPS was first created. The second was in 1950 after World War II when parks again needed help. Veterans were encouraged to "See the USA in Your Chevrolet" and take their families on the road to enjoy this country's natural resources.
This year's effort is co-chaired by First Lady Michelle Obama and former First Lady Laura Bush. It's smart to involve these high-profile women. They certainly will know how to get the attention of the press (which should be covering this story more often).
Officials are also asking for corporations to become involved. American Express, REI and Humana have all reportedly pledged to help support an ad campaign promoting our national parks. A fundraiser is also being conducted to raise money from the private sector for needed repairs and maintenance. Officials hope all of this activity will catch the attention of Congress.
President Barack Obama has requested an increase in the National Park Service budget of $432 million to address these upgrade needs. But as usual, Congress is not expected to get very excited about adding more to the NPS' annual $3 billion budget. Most of the debate will be on other budget items from entitlements to the military.
Pitch in and fix a park
Park benche
This is where the public comes in. There are quite a few lobbyists for businesses in the US. But when it comes to representing parks, the manpower is not there and mostly comes from non-profit groups with limited resources such as the Sierra Club, etc.
Perhaps if those 300 million park visitors knew of the dire need for repairs, upgrades, roads, park furniture, manpower, etc., they could contact their local congressman or woman to allocate more funds for parks.
In addition, why not create a force of volunteers who can go in and make repairs, similar to the concept behind Habitat for Humanity that helps to build homes for those in need? Create a way to attract college students and give them housing to spend spring break or their summer vacation at a national park having fun and fixing things at the same time.
Since many older retirees are generally the most frequent users of parks, organize an army of them to make repairs or help offset maintenance costs. We know there is a huge number of park volunteers currently. But this would be a high-profile, high-buzz new effort, similar to the New Deal where people across the country were put to work fixing up parks in the Works Project Administration.
That program literally blazed a trail when it came to expanding and improving parks across America. (The WPA also put quite a bit of people to work, three million at its peak in 1938).
Maybe the money is not there to pay people, but perhaps give them free passes in exchange for their efforts. There are quite a few skilled retirees roaming around the country in RVs looking for something to do.
Put on events to raise money. Another interesting program with the WPA was their Federal Project Number One which hired musicians, artists, writers, actors and directors. Somehow get artists involved in putting on shows (for donations or entry fees). Or ask artists to create works of art with a park theme that could be sold to raise money as well.
Congress needs to realize most Americans never see where their tax dollars go. But every year, millions of them do see the beauty of Yosemite, Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon and thousands of other parks scattered about the countryside. For other citizens, it's comforting to know we are preserving our natural and national treasures.
Visitors get deeply involved in those parks and spend money to do so, thereby stimulating the economy as well. They buy gas to drive long distances, pitch brand-new tents, fire up the charcoal on commercial grills for hot dogs and marshmallows, buy hiking boots and packs, launch super-lightweight kayaks and take countless photos of wildflowers with their new cameras. Certainly, Congress needs to pay attention to this huge group of voters as well. And they will if enough park enthusiasts contact them.
To read more about the National Parks Service need for more funds, click here.