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Cameron Adrian

Mr. Walsh

ENG.1201

24 March 2021

What is the main cause of destruction in the United States national parks?

On June 6th 2018, my family took a trip down to the Florida Keys where the ocean was

blue and the sand was white. My dad had an idea to take a seaplane off the coast of Key West

and land in the Dry Tortugas national park a.k.a, Fort Jefferson. When the plane had touched

down at Fort Jefferson, my eyes had been decieved. The Dry Tortugas was the most beautiful

destination I had ever seen. The brightly colored, booming coral was everywhere and the tropical

fish would swarm you everywhere you went. Truly a vacation to remember. Three years past,

during a national pandemic. My father decides to book a guys trip back to the Tortugas. I was

exhilarated! But this time, the coral was almost completely gone and the fish were nowhere to be

seen. The tour guide had mentioned people were killing the coral and driving off the fish by

stepping on and touching all of the sea life. So now I ask, What may have caused these things? It

could have been climate change or maybe certain animals but the answer is actually humans.

Since the first national park was created in 1872, to preserve the beauty of Yellowstone, humans

have negatively affected these parks in many ways. For example the depletion of natural

resources, pollution, littering, and many other physical impacts are all ways that humans have

negatively impacted our national parks.

On August 25th, 1916, Former President Wilson, signed an act creating the National Park

Service. These parks became tourist destinations from all over the world. The goal of the

National parks was to preserve the scenery and protect the luscious lands. They were deemed to
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be unimpaired and “for the enjoyment of future generations” (Herbert 1). There are a total of 63

national parks within the United States and many more in neighboring countries. Unfortunately

for these parks, human waste in toilets is causing horrible smells in the environment which can

leave an impact on the wildlife. The human footprint is making a negative impact on these

territories, and it is upsetting to think how our future generations may not be able to see these

beautiful sites. Within the past 10 years, national parks have had to go through severe funding

cuts due to the limited funding for the parks. The NPS decreased their workforce by 11 percent

even though visitors were doubling every month. The very beginning of national parks dates

back to 1864 when congress had the idea to give Yosemite Valley to california in order to protect

the untouched land and preserve it. Soon after, that land became known as Yosemite national

park. This preserved land was stated as beautiful and precious which is why the land turned into

one of The United State’s national parks. The United States in 1919 had noticed “ Mukuntuweap

National Monument was too hard to pronounce so Woodrow Wilson decided to change its name

to Zion national park to grow its fame and become an actual park. To this day, Zion national park

is one of the most popular parks in the United States and will remain that way for centuries to

come. Now that the readers have a better understanding of United State’s national parks, this

research paper can further explain itself and prove how, why, what, and so throughout the paper.

Firstly, national parks have been encroached upon by humans since the first national park

was established. Congress agreed to keep these lands safe and preserved but what was one of the

first things done by humans? People carved pathways through the parks which separated animals

from their homes. Cars and trucks constantly drive through the parks which leads to roadkill and

a disruption in the wildlife habitat. Before jumping into the data, in order to construct a road,

workers must cut out a path of trees, bushes, logs, stones, and dirt to be able to lay a first layer of
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gravel down for the road. During this process, animals and wildlife lose their habitat and become

separated from their family. One tree can be home to millions of organisms that stabilized a

niche. But once a few trees are removed from a habitat, it could unbalance the ecosystem and

leave a detrimental effect on the enviornment. A total of 106 park managers responded to the

question being, how has roads impacted mortality in wildlife? The response was, “Despite these

expressed concerns, only 36% of the NPS units used some form of mitigation method to reduce

road impacts on wildlife.” (Ament 1). Almost half of the respondents expect impacts to become

worse over the next 5 years to come. Most of the respondents agreed on the issue of the

importance of wildlife mortality on the road in their own habitats. Action would need to be taken

within the next 5-10 years. With wildlife mortality expecting to rise due to roadways, action

should be taken in order to prevent this.

Not only is the depletion of natural resources an issue, but to go along with the topic,

pollution from cars, factories, and even light pollution from cellphones and cities are destroying

the environment in national parks. Alluding back to the late 1800s- early 1900s, the main reason

for establishing these territories was to preserve them for their beauty. Thus, cities booming and

electronic light sources are causing major damage to the wildlife, especially plants and trees. The

ozone layer has become hazardous for humans as determined by the Yale School of the

Environment. A statistic, “Some 85 percent of U.S. national parks have levels of air pollution

that are hazardous to human health, according to a new report from the National Parks

Conservation Association.” and “In 88 percent of parks, air pollution is having a direct impact on

sensitive species or habitat, such as stifling tree growth, damaging leaves, and changing soil and

water chemistry” (Yale 1). Cars passing through national parks on a daily commute are affecting

the park’s environment and health as stated in this paragraph. National parks need to close down
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their roadways and give the environment small breaks to slow the amount of pollution that

humans are producing. Connecting back to the thesis, humans have damaged the ozone layer in

National parks and even all over the world by polluting so much of earth’s resources and by light

pollution. People often are on their phone a lot which may not seem like a lot. But, everyone on

their phone outside at night starts to add up causing a foggy sky. Cities are the number one cause

of light pollution especially in national parks. The atlas says, “National parks offer some of our

nation's best views of the cosmos. Atlas of Artificial Sky Brightness, significantly expands

knowledge of light pollution and its impact on the night sky.” (Duriscoe 1). As Duriscoe

mentions, light pollution from cities acts as a filter or a film across the sky making it difficult to

stargaze or see the cosmos. Fortunately for national parks, there are very few majorly populated

areas around The United State’s national parks to heavily load the night sky with light pollution

but there will always be a thin sheet of pollution blocking the sky.

Another major issue which comes from humans is littering. With common sense, people

can already figure out the negative effects that littering has on the environment. But taking a look

at statistics, “visitors generate 100 million pounds of garbage. That's enough trash to fill the

Statue of Liberty more than 1,800 times” (Taylor 1). An understanding of how much trash is

generated each year, humans are harming wildlife and their habitats just with trash alone. This

issue is on the constant rise and wildlife is being heavily affected. The article, “Crisis in our

national parks: how tourists are loving nature to death”, the author informs readers how humans

are leaving behind detrimental materials and polluting and overpopulating these scenes. When

people go camping in national parks, they tend to leave behind some trash that may end up in the

ocean, in the woods, or even on the road. Wildlife as a whole is affected by this trash left behind.

Plants are always being killed in national parks due to the trash on the ground and how the trash
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prevents the plant from growing by suffocating or blocking out its necessities. The author

explains, “Just before sunset near Page, Arizona, a parade of humanity marched up the sandy,

half-mile trail toward Horseshoe Bend” (Simmonds 1). Some of these visitors were carrying

trash they had eaten prior to the hike. Even including boxes of Mcdonalds. This trash that is

picked up by the wind is then placed in wildlife habitats and creates pollution, especially in

ponds or creeks. The most common pollution found in water by trash is a white, bubbly, and

foamy substance that forms in currents, streams and almost every body of water.

Why is it important to pick up after oneself and throw away one’s trash? As stated in

previous sources, trash in National parks is affecting the wildlife heavily. National Geographic

released an article including pictures of animals in their habitat encountering trash left behind by

humans. The picture shows a bear with its snout stuck in a cup. Maybe the bear is not stuck, but

what is inside the cup could be dangerous for the bear. The article is called “People and Parks:

Challenges and Solutions”, and is written by Angela M. Cowan.

The most upsetting ocean statistic is, “How many marine animals die each year from

plastic… 100 million is the current estimated figure, and this includes fish, mammals and

seabirds.” “As far as sea birds are concerned, the figures are shocking. Of all species studied,

98% of Albatross are believed to have ingested plastics at some point” (Condor 1). These

statistics alone are just from marine life. Imagine thinking about how much trash affects wildlife

on land and plants and trees. When thought about, scientists have only discovered about 8% of

the earth’s oceans. So imagine the trash that harms other creatures lurking at the bottom of the

ocean. Is it even possible for trash to sink that deep… The answer would be yes but scientists

have yet to discover such depths. If trash affects humans, and humans affect wildlife, and

wildlife affects vegetation, trash could very easily throw off the balance of the life cycle in the
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wild. Primitive instincts would soon just become expectations. If animals were constantly

looking for trash to eat from humans, that species of animals would quickly die off and start to

make an unbalanced ecosystem in the wild. This is how even the smallest amount of trash could

affect the biggest species of animals in the United States of America. By throwing away trash or

even just picking up after oneself, an ecosystem could be saved and remain a steady balance so

national parks could remain preserved and beautiful.

Some people may argue with these statistics and facts. For example, a student made an

argument against my thesis stating “but humans are also helping national parks, right?” The

answer, of course humans are helping national parks and preserving them for future generations.

To list some examples, organizations have committed to programs to help protect and preserve

the parks. Another way is, people are building boardwalks in order to avoid destroying habitats

by keeping feet off the ground and being able to sustain a natural height to keep wildlife safe

from a distance. People are coming up with new, eco friendly, ideas and inventions to keep

wildlife protected in parks. There was a big movement in national parks focusing on observing

from a distance. By doing so, people were able to prevent disturbing wildlife by only keeping

distance and watching from afar. By intervening or disrupting an ecosystem, wildlife will face

threats which could lead to aggressive or territorial behavior. Also, by interrupting the

environment, wildlife can be thrown off from the task at hand. Humans have clearly made an

obvious impact, both positive and negative on national parks. Thankfully, people have noticed

the negative impacts which is why there are so many national programs taking place to help

preserve these natural landscapes.

Lastly, Organizations have created The National Park Foundation which has benefitted

national parks in a myriad of ways. Some including, “In 2019 alone, NPF supported the building
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and maintenance of 420 miles of trails, protected the habitat of 14 species, restored 190 miles of

waterways, and planted over 71,000 trees and vegetation” (NPF 1). This organization has made a

positive impact and left a beautiful footprint for wildlife and vegetation in The United State’s

national parks.

John Hope Franklin summarizes an article, “Rethinking National Parks in the 21st

Century” by informing readers how in 1999, the director of the parks wanted the, “National Park

System Advisory Board to develop a report” (Franklin 1). This report was to consist of the

behaviors of parks for the next 25 years. The creation of National Parks is to show the faith

Americans have in their future generations. However, Americans need to preserve that faith by

keeping their parks clean, healthy, and beautiful. Franklin also talks about how National Parks

are supposed to inspire humans to preserve nature and show how big the world is by encouraging

tourists to slow down and take everything in for what it actually is. There is a saying which

usually gets very personal, “you only get one life, so live it”. This quote is so powerful especially

when mentioned with national parks. America’s national parks are so beautiful and free which is

why so many people have made goals to visit every national park in the United States. Humans

are only given one chance at life. Sometimes, life just has to be lived. An old Texas saying is, “if

you ain’t livin on the edge, you’re taking up too much space.” Personally, a favorite, but a bold

quote to state. By making a positive impact on national parks, humans are setting a responsible

example for future generations and allowing the future to see and observe how wonderful nature

and life actually are. It’s not everyday someone can walk outside to see a giant canyon, gorgue,

falls, or mountains. So why not just live it and take in the world. An experiment was performed

taking participants hiking through a forrest. “Results showed that those who walked in forests

had significantly lower heart rates and higher heart rate variability (indicating more relaxation
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and less stress)” (Suttie 1). From this information being gathered, nature can 100% affect a

person’s mood or attitude so by being in nature or being at a national park, that mood gains a

boost and humans are more likely to enjoy themselves and experience the big world occupied by

nature. National parks can increase creativity and less fatigue in the mind which sparks new

ideas from young to old. Many humans experience this when standing on the edge of a cliff or

drop off or even the beginning of a field spanning the length of the grand canyon. No one ever

knows what to expect until something happens.

Why do national parks need park rangers? In order for a park to thrive year round, many

owners or employees must take care of the park. To be a park ranger could be one of the coolest

jobs on the planet. To be a park ranger on an island or a ranger in the mountains, you’d mainly

see only beautiful citings that a normal person would never see in a lifetime. Park rangers ensure

not only safety but entertainment within the park territory so tourists aren’t bored. Lacking

entertainment in parks is a very negative sign for visitors to never come back for recommend the

park. So, rangers have duties to abide by the park. Some more responsibilities for a park ranger

include: patrolling campgrounds, walking trails and other areas of parks to ensure safety,

conducting tours, enforcing park rules and regulations, and to participate safely in search and

rescue missions along with many other responsibilities. With that said, go ahead and sign up to

be a ranger if interested! Requirements to become a park ranger include, a minimum of a

bachelor's degree at a four year university or school. Also you must be 18 years old and pass a

background check to insure you are responsible and will fulfill park duties.

National parks offer a myriad of recreational opportunities within its own territory. Each

park ranges from the peak of the Rockies to the depths of the Dry Tortugas. An endless amount

of traditional activities. These parks can educate humans in the arts of: nature, math, science,
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astronomy, and history. Without these national parks, humans would lose many experiences,

memories, education, and even love for the United States. These beautifully preserved areas set

aside America’s flaws and promote only its beauties. The coolest reason why to visit national

parks is most parks are free to enter and learn. There is no price for beautiful land to explore. The

amount of effort a visitor puts into their trip is the amount they will get out of it. If a traveler only

puts in a small amount of effort to learn and educate themselves about a national park, that is the

amount of education they will take home with them. A recommendation for a trip to national

parks would be to California. California’s land has a breathtaking 9 national parks. All including:

Redwood National park, Yosemite national park, Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks,

Death Valley national park, Joshua Tree national park, Channel Island national park, Lassen

Volcanic national park, and Pinnacles national park. With these 9 astounding national parks, a

visitor is in for a trip of a lifetime. A reader would be dumbfounded when realizing these 9 parks

are only within one state. Utah has 8 national parks which would be just as amazing and

stunning. National parks are for exposure and experience when it comes to a passionate traveler.

For those who achieve to travel the Earth, these parks are the key to success and the gateway for

a new beginning.

By visiting a national park, not only will you leave behind a footprint, rather a positive

impact for others to look upon . Oneself could make a positive impact and leave an everlasting

footprint the size of a canyon. Thankfully, there are 63 national parks in The United States of

America and each one will forever preserve its beauty. In order to do so is simple. A visitor must

fulfill themselves in the duties they believe to be correct and leave an everlasting footprint. With

this being said, relating back to my thesis, humans are the number one cause of destruction in
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America’s national parks due to all of the information and descriptions along with articles

explaining how humans are the biggest threat to National parks.

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Work Cited

National Geographic Society. “People and Parks: Challenges and Solutions.” National

Geographic Society, 20 Nov. 2015, www.nationalgeographic.org/activity/people-and-parks-

challenges-and-solutions/.

“New Study Shows Extent of Light Pollution across the Night Sky.” National Parks Service,

U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/subjects/nightskies/newworldatlas.htm.

“Programs That Protect.” National Park Foundation, www.nationalparks.org/our-

work/programs-projects/programs-protect.

Simmonds, Charlotte, et al. “Crisis in Our National Parks: How Tourists Are Loving Nature to

Death.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 20 Nov. 2018,

www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/nov/20/national-parks-america-overcrowding-crisis-

tourism-visitation-solutions.

Taylor, Mia. “Trash in Our National Parks - Why It's Your Problem, Too.” TheStreet,

TheStreet,8 Oct.2016,www.thestreet.com/lifestyle/travel/trash-in-our-national-parks-why-it-s-

your-problem-too-13837668.

&64;CondorFerries. “100+ Ocean Pollution Statistics & Facts (2020-2021).” Condor Ferries,

www.condorferries.co.uk/marine-ocean-pollution-statistics-facts#:~:text=pollution%20and
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%20plastic%3F-,100%20million%20marine%20animals%20die%20each%20year%20from

%20plastic%20waste,by%20North%20Pacific%20fish%20yearly.