Plans to keep America’s national parks open amid the government shutdown face challenges as the National Park Service (NPS) furloughs more than 60 percent of its staff.
The Trump administration announced its contingency plans for the parks Tuesday night, just hours before the federal government officially shut down. It determined that “park roads, lookouts, trails, and open-air memorials will generally remain accessible to visitors.”
Under the plan, parks that collect fees will use them to provide “basic visitor services” including maintaining restrooms, collecting trash, maintaining roads and campgrounds, law enforcement and emergency operations.
But at the same time, some 64 percent of NPS staff, 9,296 out of 14,500 employees, won’t be working.
Phil Francis, the former superintendent of the Blue Ridge Parkway, said if he were in charge, he would close the parks “unless we had adequate staff to protect resources and serve the visitor.”
“If we can’t protect the visiting public, then we should close the parks,” Francis told The Hill in an interview prior to the government shutdown and the release of the administration’s plan.
Other public lands are also set to remain accessible. Under a shutdown plan for the Bureau of Land Management, where 43 percent of employees will be furloughed, campgrounds, boat ramps and other recreation sites will stay open.
That plan notes that at some facilities, services including bathrooms and water systems may not be open.
“In cases where funds are not available to maintain such services, signs will be posted but visitors may remain at these sites at their own risk” the bureau’s plan states.
In an email to The Hill, a spokesperson for the Interior Department said it will “keep critical services open and running for the benefit of the American people despite efforts by Congressional Democrats who are trying to close our parks, stop U.S. energy production, and prevent our first responders like our law enforcement from keeping our streets safe and our wildland firefighters from fighting wildfires.”
“The Department hopes Congressional Democrats will get serious and agree to fund the government because every day this shutdown continues it is hurting the American people even more,” the spokesperson said.
During the last government shutdown, in 2018 and 2019, the first Trump administration also kept the national parks open despite staffing furloughs.
In one particularly high-profile incident at that time, trees were destroyed at California’s Joshua Tree National Park. And reports emerged of other problems during that time, including trash piling up at parks.
“There’s always the threat of damage to park resources. I mean, it happens when we’re fully staffed, too,” said Francis, who is now chair of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. “But it’s like opening your house and inviting people in and then everybody’s gone. Would you do that? I don’t think so.”
In a recent letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, about 40 former superintendents called for the closure of the national parks in the event of a shutdown.
“Past shutdowns in which gates remained open with limited staff have hurt our parks: Iconic symbols cut down and vandalized, trash piled up, habitats destroyed, and visitor safety jeopardized,” they wrote. “If you don’t act now, history is not just doomed to repeat itself, the damage could in fact be much worse.”
At the same time, even some Democrats are calling for parks to remain accessible.
“If Congress and the President shut down the federal government, I urge the Administration to prioritize the operations of the national parks so that they can continue to be enjoyed,” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) said in a post on Facebook. “Our state is ready to step up and keep them open.”
In statements to local news, Polis cited Rocky Mountain National Park’s importance to Colorado’s economy.
“Here in Colorado, we are evaluating all options, and are a willing partner if needed, to use limited State funds to keep our biggest park fully operational if necessary,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rep. Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.), has also reportedly pushed for Joshua Tree National Park specifically to remain open.
“For small businesses, hotels, and restaurants, even a short disruption in access to the park has real consequences,” Obernolte wrote to the Interior Department, according to Politico. “With careful management to ensure visitors’ safety and protect park resources, I believe Joshua Tree can and should remain open.”
The Trump administration’s decision contrasts with a Biden-era contingency plan that said that park service sites would “generally be closed.”
“If you don’t have all the things that go into maintaining and taking care of the parks, then they’re just going to fall into disrepair. They’re going to get overrun by people,” said Jacob Malcom, who served as an acting deputy assistant secretary at the Interior Department during the Biden administration in an interview prior to the contingency plan being made public.
“There are going to be maintenance issues. There are going to be public safety issues,” added Malcom, who is now executive director at advocacy organization Next Interior.