* Alaska Wolves Gain Protection *
The Alaska Board of Game voted in October to provide increased
protection to Denali National Park's Toklat and Margaret wolf packs --the two most viewed wolf packs in the world. After NPCA's Alaska office delivered thousands of your messages and urged protection for these wolves, the board voted to make permanent a temporary no-wolf-hunting buffer zone adjacent to the park and approved the creation of a buffer zone to protect the Margaret wolves on state land adjacent to Denali.
* Big Cypress Protected *
The threat of miles of new roads, thousands of dynamite charges, and
drilling for oil and gas landed Big Cypress National Preserve on our
2002 list of America's Ten Most Endangered Parks. In May, the Bush
Administration promised to protect the park from drilling by buying out the mineral rights from Collier Resources.
* Buffalo National River Saved from Dam *
In response to a lawsuit filed by NPCA and other environmental
groups, the Army Corps of Engineers recently revoked a permit for
construction of a dam on a tributary of the Buffalo National River in
Arkansas, one of the few remaining unpolluted, free-flowing rivers in the lower 48 states. Setting a major precedent in river protection, this decision means that the National Park Service must concur with the Corps before a permit can be approved for dam construction that would directly impact park waters, including the tributaries of any river protected by Section 7 of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
* Channel Islands, You Are Surrounded *
Twenty-five percent of waters immediately surrounding Channel
Islands National Seashore -- 175 square miles -- were declared off limits to fishing and protected from other activities. This action creates the largest marine reserve area off the continental United States and should boost fishing in nearby waters.
* Civil War Battlefields to be Preserved *
In December, the president signed the Civil War Battlefield
Preservation Act, authorizing $50 million for the preservation of
endangered Civil War battlefields outside the National Park System.
The president also signed into law Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park, Virginia, the 387th unit of the park system. A turning point in the Civil War, the battle fought there in 1864 broke the back of the Confederacy in the Shenandoah Valley.
* Glacier's Sister Park Expanded *
In October, Canada's prime minister announced plans to expand
Waterton Lakes National Park, which lies immediately north of Montana's Glacier National Park. These parks comprise the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park and are famous for their stunning mountain scenery, spectacular lakes, and world-class wildlife habitat. The prime minister also announced the creation of 10 national parks and five marine conservation areas over the next several years.
* Grand Canyon's Quiet Skies Restored *
After years of hard work and vigorous action by park activists, a
panel of judges ordered the Federal Aviation Administration to write more stringent rules for restoring natural quiet to Arizona's Grand Canyon National Park. A rapidly eroding resource, natural soundscapes allow visitors to experience the sounds of nature.
* Historic Farm Saved from Development, Added to Harpers Ferry *
The National Park Service announced in October that the 99-acre
Murphy Farm, threatened with development for housing, will be added to Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, which spans Virginia, West
Virginia, and Maryland. Adjacent to the park, the farm was the site of a Civil War battle, an abolitionist's temporary fort, and a meeting held by civil rights leader W. E. B. Du Bois.
* Jet Skis Banned *
On Earth Day, April 22, the Park Service announced permanent bans on personal watercraft (PWCs) in five parks: Cape Cod and Cumberland
Island national seashores, Delaware Water Gap and Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity national recreation areas, and Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. You sent more than 20,000 letters this year to
urge the Park Service to ban PWCs from parks, where they are clearly inappropriate.
* Mojave Saved from Water Project *
Mojave National Preserve and four Bureau of Land Management
wilderness areas were saved from a deeply flawed water project. The
project, which would have caused water shortages and dust storms, threatened the Mojave Desert's fragile ecosystem, home to desert bighorn sheep and desert tortoises.
* National Historical Park Expanded *
Tumacacori National Historical Park in Arizona awaits just the
president's signature before it can be increased sevenfold, adding 310 acres. This southern Arizona park encompasses the abandoned ruins of three ancient Spanish colonial missions. Two of the missions were established in 1691, making them the oldest missions in Arizona. Historic events at Tumacacori illustrate how different people interacted and ultimately learned to live together, and the park's preservation honors America's cultural and ethnic diversity.
Yep, he sure is anti-earth isn't he?
