Our national park system enjoys almost universal bipartisan support in Congress. True, the parks don’t get all the money they need, but there is no obvious constituency that seeks to dismantle the park system. We all believe that the parks preserve at least a token of the natural heritage of this country, and certain parks, like the Grand Canyon, are iconic.
But a recent study shows some alarming trends. After witnessing the impact that air pollution – largely originating from LA – had on plants growing in Joshua Tree National Park, a group of ecologists examined just how well our parks were equipped to safe-haven our nation’s biodiversity. In particular, they examined impacts that can be difficult to manage, like nearby suburban development, climate change, and the arrival of invasive species.
Since the 1940s, housing density outside the borders of our national parks has increased by 740%. Some 13% of the plants in our parks are non-native, and 80% of our parks have seen an average temperature increase of 1oC in the last 100 years. The rate of climate change predicted for this century means that in the near future, many parks will no longer resemble the biome that they were set aside to preserve. All parks are now subjected to atmospheric CO2 concentrations 1/3 higher than 100 years ago, with documented effects on plant growth.
No part of nature is an island. We need to rethink the management of our national parks to ensure that they preserve our nation’s heritage as planned more than 150 years ago.
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See Hansen et al. Ecological Applications, April 2014.
Photo, taken April 4, 2014, courtesy of Mark Smith via Flickr.
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Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Support for Earth Wise comes from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY.