Glacier National Park, $178,517,042 behind in maintenance
While congressional Republicans
slashed and
burned through draconian budget resolutions, and
put their stamp of approval on state efforts to have a fire sale of our public lands, the National Park Service
released a report detailing how budget cuts have resulted in a backlog of more than $11 billion worth of maintenance.
The park service said it delayed an estimated $11.5 billion worth of needed maintenance projects last year due to funding shortages, with the total growing nearly 2 percent compared to 2013. The backlog has reached its highest point since President Obama took office, expanding nearly 13 percent during that time. […]
The mounting maintenance concerns come as the National Park Service prepares to celebrate its 100th year in August 2016.
"As we invite more Americans to discover the special places in the National Park System during our centennial celebration, we need to have facilities that can accommodate them and provide the best possible experience," agency director Jonathan Jarvis said in a news release on Monday.
The National Park Service has asked Congress for $243 million in new funding over the next 10 years to restore its non-transportation facilities to good condition. President Obama's 2016 budget proposal requests an additional $150 million to pay for major transportation projects on federal lands, including national parks.
It
breaks down into $5.63 billion needed for paved roads and structures, $5.86 billion for other structures, and $2.17 billion for the highest priority, non-transportation facilities. California alone has
$1.7 billion worth of needed repairs in its parks, and Washington, DC, is not far behind with nearly $1.2 billion in deferred maintenance; Arizona $516 million; Wyoming $866 million.
Almost 293 million people visited a national park in 2014. That's a wonderful thing, it's what the parks were meant for! But it also makes for a great deal of wear and tear that has to be repaired for the next 300 million visits.