As the summer travel season heats up, conditions inside the U.S. national park system are deteriorating under the weight of severe staffing shortages and budget constraints. At Yosemite National Park, even scientists like hydrologists and invasive species experts are being pulled from their core responsibilities to clean toilets and man entry gates — roles typically filled by lower-wage, seasonal employees.
This is part of a broader national crisis. From Oregon’s Crater Lake to Yellowstone, the National Park Service (NPS) is struggling to keep essential services running amid unprecedented visitor numbers. The root cause? A 13% cut to NPS’s 20,000-member workforce since Donald Trump returned to the White House, exacerbated by layoffs and buyouts implemented by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk.
Former Crater Lake superintendent Kevin Heatley, who resigned in May, described conditions as untenable, citing extreme understaffing and mandates like weekly job justification emails that drained morale. The park has lost nearly half its essential personnel, leaving it dangerously vulnerable. “Crater Lake is on a precipice,” Heatley warned. “It’s like a starving man and you are taking away another half of his rations.”
Despite reassurances from officials — including Yosemite’s tourism bureau claiming minimal cuts — frontline employees and conservation advocates paint a grimmer picture. Kristen Brengel of the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) warns of slower emergency response times, reduced ranger patrols, and growing visitor risks due to inadequate staffing.
Even high-profile parks like Yellowstone may be forced to sacrifice conservation and research in favor of basic visitor services. Former superintendent Dan Wenk told Reuters that, with limited resources, managers will prioritize litter removal and road access over ecological oversight.
The political stakes are rising as more than 331 million Americans visited national parks last year — a record — and conditions are set to decline. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s order to keep all parks “open and accessible” may clash with reality, as only 3,300 of a promised 7,700 seasonal rangers have been hired so far.
Unless urgent action is taken, America’s “crown jewels” could soon become symbols of government dysfunction, with consequences for visitor safety, staff wellbeing, and the future of public lands.
Swifteradio.com
