national parks

Acadia National Park had 2 million visitors in 2007, but now it gets 4 million visitors. This overcrowding is causing issues with safety and beauty. There are 63 national parks in the US, and visitor management is a major problem. For example, Zion National Park receives 4.3 million visitors a year, even though it is smaller than Yellowstone. Overcrowding leads to congestion and a decline in the visitor experience. Some parks require reservations, but there are still problems. The wildlife and conservation of the parks are important stakeholders, and overcrowding can negatively impact them. Visitors also face difficulties with the current reservation system, and it discourages easy access to the parks. The National Park Service needs to improve its policies and find better solutions to manage visitor numbers. Having caps on visitors and enforcing reservations can help maintain the beauty of the parks and provide funding. It is important to balance the needs of both stakeholders and pre Acadia National Park was the first national park I had been to at just 2 years old. The year was 2007 and they had 2 million visitors that year. Today, if I were to go to Acadia, I would be one of the 4 million visitors. In such a short amount of time, the number of visitors doubled. This recent influx of visitors affects the parks in many ways, including safety and beauty. I have been to 14 national parks throughout the United States and I'm confident in saying that overcrowding has become an issue that needs to be discussed more. The National Park Service is not reacting properly to this issue and is potentially causing more issues with the system they currently have in place. Within the United States, there are 63 established national parks. The first park recognized was Yellowstone National Park in 1872 upon the signing of the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act by President Euclides S. Grant. Later, in 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the act that created the National Park Service. This was responsible for 35 national parks and monuments at the time. Today, the major issue with the parks is visitor management and the impact of these growing numbers of visitors. Zion National Park, located in Utah, is a great example of overcrowding. The park is relatively smaller than others at just under 150,000 acres. Zion receives 4.3 million visitors a year, a similar number to parks like Yellowstone. The only problem is that Yellowstone is four times larger. Smoky Mountain National Park faces the highest visiting counts, reaching above 14 million in 2021. This raises two significant issues. A decline in the quality of visitor experience that a national park is supposed to provide and damaging impacts on the ecology of these intact natural places. Recently, seven national parks began requiring reservations to enter the park. However, this is still not enough to combat the issue. There are many holes in the reservation system that do not address issues such as spontaneous visits, locals, no-shows, etc. This podcast will discuss the stakeholders in this issue of overcrowding in national parks and potential solutions to this problem. The first stakeholder in this scenario is the wildlife and conservation of these parks. These parks are amazing, beautiful places that should be taken care of appropriately. The inexistence of rules that cap the visitor count raises many ethical questions. Ethically, it is disrespectful to the beauty and wildlife in the park. An influx of visitors can have many negative effects on the park. For one, some visitors are not exactly respectful of the rules the parks have in place. And the more visitors, the more types of these hikers the park will have. This respect includes leaving no trace, wildlife viewing rules, backcountry use restrictions, alcohol and drug regulations, drone restrictions, and rules about cultural and historical sites. When visitors break these rules set by the park, issues arise. Leaving no trace is especially important because it helps the park maintain their beauty and for wildlife to stay unaffected by humans. When someone throws trash onto the trail, this affects the environment and wildlife directly. Attempting to interact with wildlife is also a massive issue in the parks, like feeding them. Feeding animals creates dependency, disrupts natural food patterns, and potentially creates health risks for the animals. As visiting numbers increase, congestion of the park begins. This congestion means overcrowding trails, viewpoints, and visitor centers. This also puts a massive strain on the user experience, which makes it less enjoyable for those who come. Having such large crowds means there will be a need for more infrastructure built, like parking. Over time, there is a point where this diminishes the beauty and true meaning of the national park. The second stakeholder in this scenario is the park visitors. Many park visitors want to enjoy the parks when they please, without needing to pay for a reservation fee a month in advance. This is because this raises multiple issues and policy questions. For instance, many hikers plan more spontaneously and are not going to plan to go to a park months ahead of time. Those who are local to the state and area may find more difficulties with visiting their park, since they will not plan so much in advance to go somewhere so close. For example, Glacier National Park has an extremely competitive reservation system. As it opens, it will sell out within 10 minutes. Montana Congressman Ryan Zink tweeted out his struggles about how he failed to score a reservation. The major policy concerning this rise is how informal this system is and how difficult it is to book. Increased numbers of people are reporting bad experiences at parks, like Yosemite. Public Affairs Officer for Yosemite, Scott Giedeman, stated that When you've got two and a half hours waiting in a line to get in, then you get there and shuttle buses are packed and there are long lines for food, it's just not a good experience. Having been to Yosemite, I can definitely confirm that this is true. We waited in a line every morning for about three hours. The policy the National Park Service currently has in place allows for limited types of users. The user that they can mostly obtain with this system is someone who plans well in advance, has high internet speed, and a job that allows them to plan for vacation months in advance. Another issue that hikers have brought up is that when people cancel or do not show to their reservations, it prevents those who would have come and enjoyed the park. Many will book an entire week at a park only to go a few days, which in turn prevents someone else from going. Overall, visitors can be negatively affected by this system because it discourages and does not allow for easy access to somewhere that is supposed to be enjoyed by the American public. In my opinion, I believe that supporting the park's well-being and keeping it as natural as possible is the most important thing. Tourists should understand why the National Park Service has rules in place for this, and if they do not understand this and are not appreciative of the conservation of the beauty these parks hold, then they should not come. However, I do believe that their policies could be tweaked. I believe that every park, not just seven, should have rules in place for how many visitors may enter. This could be based on size and other various factors. I do not believe that the reservation system they currently have in place is adequate, and should not force people to book months in advance. An alternative that I think might be positive for the parks is buying a pass at the beginning of the year that allows you to get first pick and allows you to get into the parks more easily without booking months beforehand. This will be positive for those who travel a lot and are not sure what their next plans will be. It's also important to note that the National Park Service does have a pass already in place, but not for reservations specifically, but rather for cars. Another alternative could be if you are a resident of the state, you can sign up for a pass that allows you to go to the park in your state with a reservation for rather a week out. Overall, it is important to have caps for visitors on these parks so that they do not diminish the beauty of the area by overcrowding and the need for more infrastructure. Enforcing reservations will also help further fund the National Park Service, despite the reservations being very little money. Right now, a reservation fee for the parks is $2. If they were to enforce this at every park, it could be a very simple way to raise money to keep the parks beautiful and clean. My proposal is beneficial because it addresses both sides and will keep the park well taken care of, while also allowing better ways for people to access it. At the end of the day, these 63 parks are some of the most beautiful, breathtaking pieces of land that the United States has to offer. It is important to maintain this beauty through the simple process of keeping the land untouched and the visitors regulated. The policy currently in place by the National Park Service is vital to the well-being of the park, but is not well enough developed and needs serious tweaks. Through the system and tweaks I discussed, I believe the park could improve tremendously in the interest of both stakeholders. By keeping these parks at a reasonable number of tourists, it will make the parks safer, cleaner, easier, more natural, and overall gorgeous. Thank you. Thank you.