National treasures on endangered list - National Society for Park Resources - national parks - Brief Article

Parks & Recreation, Feb, 2003

"The Bush administration needs to halt its attack on national parks and provide the protections our nation's treasures need," according to Ronald Tipton, president of the National Parks Conservation Association. Tipton said so while announcing the fifth annual list of the 10 most endangered national parks. Sadly, this year's list contains many of our most beloved parks. The list of endangered parks includes: Big Thicket National Preserve, Texas; Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska; Everglades National Park, Florida; Glacier National Park, Montana; Joshua Tree National Park, California; Ocmulgee National Monument, Georgia.; Shenandoah National Park, Virginia; Virgin Islands National Park; and Yellowstone National Park, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

Several administrative actions have hurt our park system, according to Tipton. He cited changes in the Clean Air Act, regulations regarding road building and snowmobiling in parks, and the continued backlog of maintenance work, despite Bush's campaign promise to fund these efforts.