American National Parks
Current Issues and Developments

National parks are supposed to provide a place of solace, reflection, observing beauty, learning, peace and recreation. Their beauty and resources, however, have also attracted plunders, developers and the jealous glances of greedy government officials. The National Park Service has responsibility for administering the 378 diverse units comprising 83.4 million acres of land. The NPS has done a good job in an extremely difficult mission. The book brings together the key issues threatening American national parks while at the same time shedding light on specific parks.

Contents: Preface
National Parks Management and Recreation
National Park System: Establishing New Units
Regional Haze: EPA's Proposal to Improve Visibility in National Parks and Wilderness Areas
State Operation of National Parks During Government Budgetary Shutdowns?
New World Gold Mine and Yellowstone National Parks
Mining in National Parks and Wilderness Area: Policy, Rules, Activity
World Heritage Convention and U.S. National Parks
National Park Service: Efforts Underway to Address its Maintenance Backlog
National Park Service: Actions Needed to Improve Travel Cost Management
Index.