The Interior Department has extended the period in which the public may comment on the National Park Service's controversial plan to rewrite the management policies for the national parks.
But the extension was unnecessary, just as the rewrite itself is unnecessary. The public has already spoken and so have its elected representatives. Their central message is that the administration's proposed revisions will serve no one, least of all the parks, and that the Interior Department would be well advised to abandon the effort.
The main problem with the proposed revisions is that, taken together, they shift the management focus from the park service's central, historic mission — preserving natural resources for the enjoyment of future generations — to commercial and recreational use of the park for today's generation. As many members of the House and Senate have pointed out in letters to Interior Secretary Gale Norton, air quality and wilderness are especially at risk since the policy appears to invite greater use of snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles.
We hope that Congress can dissuade Ms. Norton and her parks director, Fran Mainella, from proceeding with these unnecessary changes. But even if it does, it will still have one more battle to fight. And that is to provide the money the National Park Service needs to operate the parks properly and to repair their deteriorating infrastructure.
President Bush's new budget calls for a $100 million cut in park appropriations. Viewed cynically, deliberately underfinancing the parks could create the necessary cover for opening the parks to more commercial activity — the last thing the parks need. ...
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