Visitors to national parks and public lands are beginning to feel the funding cuts and layoffs imposed earlier this year by the Trump administration.
“I’ve been visiting national parks for 30 years and never has the presence of rangers been so absent,” a visitor to Zion National Park wrote in National Park Service public feedback obtained by CNN. The visitor said they saw just one trail crew at the iconic Utah park, and there were no educational programs offered at any of the five parks they visited on their trip. At Yosemite, another visitor said there were no rangers at the Hetch Hetchy reservoir station, preventing visitors from picking up wilderness permits.
Despite promises from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to hire more rangers, as of June, the park service had 12,600 full-time employees—24 percent less staff than it had at the beginning of the year. That’s the lowest staffing level in over 20 years, according to the National Parks Conservation Association.
Meanwhile, several pit toilets in Utah’s national forests are closed because they’ve reached capacity and the U.S. Forest Service is unable to pump them. The issue stems from a failure to approve contracts due to chaos at the federal level, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.
And these problems are likely about to get worse, not better. President Donald Trump’s proposed 2026 budget includes nearly $4 billion in funding cuts to national parks, national forests, wildlife refuges, wilderness and recreation areas, and more.
Quick hits
Donald Trump orders entry fee, less inclusion at national parks
‘Hire back park staff’: Visitors feel the pinch of Trump’s layoffs at National Park Service
Fighting for the future: Former White River National Forest chief vows to battle for unique American legacy
A staggering number of national parks workers have now departed
Opinion: Americans Fought Off This Awful Idea in Trump’s Bill
60 miles of mountain bike trail to be built on public lands in southern Utah
Battles over public lands loom even after sell-off proposal fails
Selling off Colorado: Tech bros and conservatives have grand plans for federal lands
Quote of the day
I just think the public land system in America is what makes us a strong nation. It’s so American, as far as an ideal, and no one else is really doing it this way. To have hundreds of millions of acres in public trust for everyone? That’s a pretty cool job… So it’s certainly bittersweet leaving.”
—Scott Fitzwilliams, former supervisor of the White River National Forest
Picture This
Live, laugh, lick 🧂
Salt is an important nutrient for mountain goats, and they will go to great lengths to get it. Because they don’t get salt from vegetation, their natural behavior is to venture to mineral deposits or licks. Photo by Terry Wilson
Feature image: Busy boardwalks at Mud Volcano; NPS/Flickr