mike_soukup@nps.gov
Associate Director, NPS Natural Resource Stewardship and Science, Washington, D.C.
Back to Chapter 6: New Horizons
President mandates coral reef protection
by James Tilmant
Feral burro removal: New solutions to an old problem
by Christopher J. Stubbs
Doppler technology applied to large-river studies
by Brian L. Cluer
Natural resource information tools make their way to the web
by Jen Coffey
Solicitor opinions advance park protection
by Julia Brunner and Carol McCoy
Research and collecting permit procedures revised
by Robert Winfree
Fee demonstration funds bolster natural resource protection
by Abigail Miller
Several of the act’s provisions build on efforts already under way in many parks, and they reinforce the timeliness of the Director’s Natural Resources Initiative unveiled last fall. Section 101 of the act directs the Secretary of the Interior to continually improve the National Park Service’s ability to provide and demonstrate its scientific basis for its management, protection, and interpretation of park resources. The remaining natural resources–related provisions state how to achieve this goal. For example, section 102 requires the Park Service to develop a comprehensive training program for all employees to ensure that they are equipped with “the best, up-to-date knowledge, skills, and abilities” to protect park resources. The next section calls for enhanced management opportunities for career employees with specialized academic backgrounds, such as in the sciences and resource management, to assume park management positions, especially superintendencies.
Provisions in Title II relate to the role of research in park management. Section 202 sets forth a research mandate for the secretary to provide for the highest-quality science and its use in decision making. Section 203 builds on this direction by promoting cooperative agreements with universities and colleges to obtain multidisciplinary research results and information products to improve park management at local and regional levels. Later, the legislation encourages the pursuit of scientific study in parks by a broad range of entities so long as that research is commensurate with park protection. Section 204 reinforces efforts already under way in many parks to collect and maintain baseline data on park resources for the assessment of long-term trends in their condition. Another provision enables the Park Service to withhold the location of certain vulnerable resources in parks when responding to Freedom of Information Act requests.
Pulling all these provisions together is section 206, which designates superintendents as accountable for using the results of scientific study in their management actions. According to the act, the trend in the condition of resources will be a “significant factor in the annual performance evaluation of each superintendent.” Finally, section 801 calls for an evaluation of NPS law enforcement programs, a critical component of resource stewardship.
Adherence to the direction contained in the Omnibus Act, coupled with the Natural Resource Initiative and other efforts, should help the National Park Service to be a successful and prudent manager of the nation’s natural and cultural heritage in the 21st century.