Jennifer Ostlund / Staff Writer

     As part of the Trump administration’s attempt at reducing the size of the federal government, around 1,000 National Park Service employees were laid off on Valentine’s Day. 

     While an official list of all the layoffs is yet to be released by the NPS, the impact of these cuts is already being felt before the start of the busy park season.

     NPS employees do more than welcoming and guiding visitors: According to the NPS website, they also make sure the parks remain clean, research wildlife and ecosystems, operate important machinery, enforce park regulations and other important jobs that keep U.S. parks safe for both visitors and the wildlife living there. 

     Having well-maintained parks allows for visitors to experience the benefits of nature, including the improvement of mental and physical health. 

     According to Kirsten Weir of the American Psychological Association, exposure to nature leads to “improved attention, lower stress levels, better mood and even an uptick in empathy and cooperation.”  

     As for physical health, The University of California states that spending time in nature, “reduces cortisol levels, muscle tension and rates of heart disease,” among other benefits.

     However, more than the safety of the parks and health benefits are being lost–the parks themselves will have to make cuts to the services they provide in response to a smaller workforce.

     According to USA Today, the cuts could lead to “shorter visiting hours, fewer activities, closed campgrounds, limited area access” and other cutbacks. 

     With these losses, profit generated from park visitation and tourism will potentially decrease as well as impact any surrounding communities.

     The U.S. Department of The Interior states that in 2022, “visitor spending contributed $50.3 billion nationwide, with around $23.9 billion being spent in communities 60 miles of a national park.”

     Despite the huge economic impact, the group most affected by the NPS layoffs are ecosystems and the wildlife that live within them at the National parks.

     The National Park Conservation Association states that without proper NPS employees to “regulate park rules, track wildlife and work to protect the park ecosystems,” historical losses will occur.

     With all the potential losses on the horizon due to cuts, the NPS has plans to hire seasonal workers to make up for it, but the impact will already be underway.

     National parks are a staple of American tourism as well as environmental and historical conservation, making the protection of them all the more important. 

     There are still multiple ways to help the parks and those affected by the cuts: offering to volunteer in important positions at the parks, spreading awareness to those in your circle, donating to NPS conservation groups and signing multiple petitions–many of which can be found on the National Parks Conservation Association website.