ISU Bengal

Issue date: 2/21/07 Section: Outdoor

Media Credit: Chris Carlson The Angel River flows through a canyon in Zion National Park, Utah.

President Bush wants tourists to see more rangers, better programs and cleaner amenities at the country's 390 national parks.

Last week, he asked Congress for $2.4 billion to bolster the cash-strapped parks _ $258 million more than in fiscal 2006. It's the largest dollar increase proposed in the Park Service's 90-year history.

The money is sorely needed. Decades of budget shortfalls have forced parks to slash staff, cancel programs, defer maintenance, and neglect artifacts and natural resources. Since Sept. 11, 2001, funding has been diverted to security of national icons. Money also went toward repairs from devastating tornadoes and hurricanes.

Candidate Bush pledged in 2000 to rebuild national parks, but until now his budgets haven't lived up to that promise. Congress, likewise, has been stingy. It's time to reverse course and restore the parks, rightly considered one of America's best ideas.

Gettysburg, where school groups are turned away and cannon carriages are rotting, would see a 20 percent operational increase over 2006, under Bush's proposal. Valley Forge would get 7 percent more, according to an analysis by the watchdog group National Parks Conservation Association.

Valley Forge could hire more seasonal interpreters, maintenance and security staff for the first time in years, Superintendent Michael Caldwell said last week.

Beyond day-to-day funding, the president issued a "Centennial Challenge," a promising public-private partnership to spruce up popular attractions before the Park Service's 100th anniversary in 2016. Bush pledges up to $100 million in federal matching funds every year for 10 years to attract more philanthropic and corporate donations. Now, parks receive about $20 million in annual donations.

Pew Charitable Trusts stepped up immediately. Pew has been working with the Park Service for more than a year to redevelop the Franklin Court Underground Museum, a bicentennial gem that hasn't aged well. Kids today find it dark, gloomy and technically dated.

Pew president and CEO Rebecca Rimel pledged $6 million to match the federal money and said she could raise an additional $6 million from community and state leaders. With a total of $18 million, Franklin Court could again become the Benjamin Franklin showplace that tourists expect in Independence Park.

Hoping to nurture future campers and hikers, Coleman Co. and REI also are excited about the Centennial Challenge. Congress should embrace the idea as an "extra" on top of full operational funding.

The parks need better stewardship for this year's 270 million visitors and for generations to come.

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