"Journal of Public Economics found that when an existing park was upgraded to National Park status, both employment (4%) and income (6%) increase in the surrounding area" #parkchat Big Idea: Western Pennsylvania should have a National Park | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette share.google/NklxP8XZBB6L...

Link to Public Comments Due Sept 30th: USDA Opens Public Comment Period on Department Reorganization Plan | USDA share.google/VI6TOj6frZXs... The dismantling of the Forest Service - High Country News share.google/3Oo5FqQHyL7r...

Decades of public-lands planning, overturned in a day - High Country News share.google/IKTztC8JUsFJ...

"Most on both sides of the debate agree that without Redford's efforts, particularly in the mid-1970s, there probably would be no Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument today." #parkchat REDFORD FIGHTS ON TO PRESERVE UTAH – Deseret News share.google/6w2vpPihDwYg...

Speak up!

Sunset this evening from a DNR wildlife preserve on the Skagit River Delta.

This is a good dive into current NPS conditions with a focus on research, and the future of our natural resource agencies if things don't change. #parkchat

From layoffs to billion-dollar budget cuts and ideological battles over history itself, the National Park Service is facing one of the most turbulent moments in its 109-year history. This week on @revealnews.org:

Wonderful little film. 🤍

Excited to announce that my 5th and final PhD chapter is now published! 🥳 Teaching fish new tricks: repeated exposure to a velocity barrier improves passage performance #fishlearning #fishpassage #galaxiids #fishswimming #fish 🐟🐟🐟 journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...

Congratulations Rachel! Looks like a great study and I’m not surprised at all that those little escape artists were able to figure it out 👀

Swamp Creek sunset marking the end of our most recent western WA heatwave

Mind Blowing. “This administration has taken a very narrow view of weather...” Trump admin strips ocean and air pollution monitoring from next-gen weather satellites | CNN share.google/kyMGHWcQNHMd...

We just seeing the early days of cuts to parks staffing #parkchat bsky.app/profile/klcc...

Overflowing toilets, trash heaps plague Washington hiking hot spots share.google/jpkllAog2J6g...

Great federal management of our public lands. But also, why people? Why do we treat our public lands like this? #parkchat youtube.com/shorts/MMfhi...

"The US Forest Service is accepting public comments until August 26 about the future of the agency. Everyone who cares about forests, trails and wildlife habitat can speak up to strengthen how the USDA stewards our public lands." 🌍 www.outdooralliance.org/blog/2025/8/...

Visited the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge along Columbia River floodplain north of Portland. Lots of Egrets this visit. There were groups out in the fields, these were feeding in the canals.

Supporting our parks! #parkchat Six-figure donation helps save future of North Cascades equine program | Cascadia Daily News share.google/ZpskPdKHQCHk...

Osprey perched high above a parking lot & near a busy road in Kenmore WA.

About time. Shillapoo South Wildlife Area near Vancouver could be reconnected to the Columbia River, says state - The Columbian share.google/FbnMv1v4QIYj...

Low tide, Puget Sound

“From a hydrology perspective, the fire is a disaster,” said Mark Nebel, who worries that ash, sediment and chemical fire retardant may seep through the ground and into the aquifer. “The drinking water quality in the park could be impacted for many years.” www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Most in-depth look I’ve seen at what happened, particularly related to letting the fire burn, for folks following that situation and its implications.

Heron scratching an itch, Swamp Creek, Wa

"But there are two halves to the National Park Service mission. One half is preserving the resources for future generations, and they are taking away the emphasis on preserving the resources."

Holy Crap! Never stayed overnight at the North Rim Lodge but it was always a part of every visit - gawking at the view, chilling out of the heat while waiting for others. What a loss. My only photo, looking out at the canyon from one of its huge windows. What a loss! #parkchat

#parchat Wildfires force hundreds to evacuate from Grand Canyon National Park share.google/uCRP9aJWN7sf...

Tree swallow on a blackberry vine the Skagit River delta, Wa

So this is confusing; will we be required to show a real passport to enter a park? Oh, and our parks are for everyone, period. History matters. #parkchat Trump orders national parks to charge some tourists higher fees share.google/TyNqOIxDytWU...

Am I doing this retirement thing right? Is only been a couple of days.

If you have it, throw a few dollars to @protectparks.bsky.social for their extraordinary advocacy work.

#parkchat "WaP0: How park visitors responded when asked to report anti-American signs" www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...

A couple of views from parks in Astoria Oregon this weekend: Mouth of the Columbia River & the Centennial Tree, a large Sitka Spruce in lush PNW forest. #parkchat

Sun setting on Swamp Creek, Wa

We now know that the GOP's Big Ugly bill would allow for the sale of 250 MILLION acres of public land. 5.4 million in Washington state. We can't let them jam this through in secret. Help me say it loud and clear for Republicans: Public lands belong in public hands.

#ParkChat Book Club is just beginning "Hey Ranger! by Jim Burnett. The book shares encounters with wildlife, dumb crooks, and more. We meet twice (first half): 6/17, (second half) 7/15 at 5 PM Pacific. DM @ocparkbuilder.bsky.social for details.

Paywalled, but this headline in the "the paper of record" seems dreadful. Maybe someone with access can summarize. #parkchat www.nytimes.com/2025/06/01/o...

It's June. #parkchat Crater Lake National Park superintendent resigns as staffing plunges www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...

A12. State parks fans, I'd appreciate if you'd share my new essay about the history of Washington state parks, just published on @historylink.bsky.social. Let me know what you think! #ParkChat historylink.org/File/23266

"Because we understand that there’s a different kind of wealth in this country. Not measured in board feet or dollars, but in quiet. In a trail through the woods. In the kind of beauty that humbles you. And that’s what’s being erased and forgotten." morethanjustparks.substack.com/p/on-the-mea...

🚨Trump is ripping away taxpayer dollars from blue states like mine for critical Army Corps projects that support foundational water infrastructure. He is defunding the Howard Hanson Dam to the tune of nearly HALF A BILLION DOLLARS. This is some corrupt BS. I'm fighting back.

View of Coromandel NZ from an overlook at Kaipawa Trig Track. The storms from Cyclone Tam were just breaking up - people at the overlook told us the road past Coromandel was flooded, but after enjoying a treat at Coro Pies the drive south was ok.

Aratiatia Kohatu stone (front & back, about 7 or 8 feet tall) marking the start of a short trail to Aratiatia Rapids, All the river water here is controlled by dam releases & people gather to watch the dry riverbed fill in seconds. NZ. "Dedicated to the People of Nagat Tahu - Ngati Whoa"

Sunset on Lake Taupo, New Zealand. Lake Taupo is a volcanic caldera formed by an eruption 1000 times greater than Mt Saint Helens. #parkchat

Kākāriki - New Zealand Native Parakeet from a visit to the Otorohanga Kiwi House. Kiwis are nocturnal and we saw them in a night exhibit, but no flash photos were allowed. Great place to see NZ birds up close. www.kiwihouse.org.nz

Raglan, New Zealand, where the Tawatahi River meets the Tasman Sea was very scenic. Popular w surfers & nice little town to visit, wish we'd stayed longer.

Slowly getting out some photos from our recent visit to New Zealand. The AJ Seeley Gulch in Hamilton was a real surprise in an urban environment. Dr Seeley spent 50 yrs replanting a cleared gully before gifting this lush, semitropical forested habitat to the city. #parkchat

Another source for planning National Park visits and some jobs for rangers #parkchat www.outsideonline.com/culture/outd...

New Tribal National Park. Would like to visit: #parkchat www.oregonlive.com/native-ameri...