In a historic move, the National Park Service (NPS) has just received its most significant funding since its inception in 1967 from Eli Lilly, a pharmaceutical company. The NPS needs more funding because of decreased park staff by 20% and increased visitors by 16%, leaving less staff to oversee the visitors and land. The NPS manages 85 million acres of protected US land, and 320 million people frequently visit it. In 2021, the NPS did a study and found that 57% of national parks are at a high risk of one or more high-impact factors such as fire, drought, sea level rise, forest pests, diseases, and much more. This funding will significantly help these problems.

Even though Congress funds the National Park Service, they only get one-fifteenth of one percent of our taxes. This shows how the National Park Service receives this small percentage of tax funding. The NPS is so underfunded that it has an 11 billion-dollar shortfall. This comes from a backup of projects, land acquisitions, and resource protection projects. Without proper funding, the NPS cannot maintain safe parks. Some problems they cannot fix are drilling, mining, and logging near park borders, as well as air and water pollution that drifts into the parks. Even the trash that some visitors leave behind is something our national parks cannot fix. Despite these challenges, there are promising developments. For instance, the Great American Outdoors Act provides funding to improve infrastructure and expand recreational opportunities on public lands.

Even though the National Park Service is experiencing a budget crisis, it still provides fun activities for visitors, such as a free swim in the park’s water facilities. It also gives valuable tips on swimming, but at certain times, the water currents can sweep you away, so be very careful when you go on this adventure.