National Park Service Essay, Research Paper

Topic: The National Park Service will continue to play an important role in

twenty-first century society. Abstract: Those with a sense of destiny cried not

exploitation, but preservation of America?s land. This belief created the

first National Park and later the National Park Service to protect it and the

lands that were to be added. The National Park Service will continue to protect

the land and provide for the common good so visitors can enjoy the freedom of

nature and see the unspoiled earth, as man first knew it. One country, one land

bursting with life beholds the unspoiled beauty in America?s National Parks.

Those citizens with a sense of destiny cried not exploitation, but preservation

of the land. In 1872, Congress set aside two million acres of land to

established the first national park, Yellowstone (Questar). Congress had vision

to preserve the natural wonder of the land for the enjoyment of all Americans.

It was called ?the best idea America ever had.? Believing in this vision,

Woodrow Wilson signed legislation to form the National Park Service in 1916 to

protect the lands set aside by Congress. As the National Park System began to

grow from 7.5 million acres of land to 80.1 million acres, measures had to be

taken in order to establish rules and limitations within the parks. The National

Park System contains some of the most important and largest natural

preservations in the country: millions of acres of old untouched forests,

wildlife reservations, lakes, and other natural beauties are preserved and

protected as national treasures (Lovett 10). Allowing people access to the parks

could harm the land in which Congress strives to protect. The question is how

can the spirit of the land be preserved without taming it and is it possible to

for the parks to be enjoyed and protected at the same time? The National Park

Service serves the common good of the parks by ensuring that the community

members have access to the park resources, and by ensuring that park resources

are protected for the benefit of the future generations (12). This is not an

easy task to achieve. It is the responsibility of the National Park Service to

make certain that the parks can be enjoyed and preserved; but on the other hand

it is the responsibility of visitors to respect the land as if it was their own.

The responsibility of the park service requires such duties as maintaining safe

and pleasant visitor accommodations and providing visitors with information

(maps and guides) to educate them about the park so they can fully experience

the beauty and importance of a natural environment. The park service cares

whether if the visitors have a nice vacation while in the parks (Sellars 14).

That is why they make efforts to educate people about the parks, encourage

visitation, serve the interests of both the visitors of today and of the future,

and to make in the informed decisions about the land. By continuing to protect

the parks against the wear and tear of use so that the original values of each

park remain intact for each visitor the National Park service will continue to

play an important role in the twenty-first century. The national park system

serves the individual needs of our country and our land. These needs provide

tourism and vacationing, the opportunity to interact with nature, enjoyment of

cultural and historical monuments, and physical exercise (Lovett16). The

contributions of the park system are valued as common goods to the country. As

long as the park service continues to provide their efforts to keep the parks

looking beautiful and consistent with nature, America will always have a place

of refuge in common. In cooperation with the legislation passed by government,

the National Park Service will continue to play an important role in American

society by protecting our mountains from being striped, trees cut, and water

tainted (Cong 27). Without the aid of Congress and the Park Service, America?s

beautiful land could be thrashed and misused, in which case people of the future

would not be able to enjoy the majestic grandeurs of America. The influence of

the National Park Service in America has spread to other countries. Without a

doubt, the actions and of the National Park Service will continue to play an

important role in the twenty-first century. The protection and preservation of

America?s land both inside and outside the National Parks are as important now

as it was when America did not even exist, and more importantly they will

continue play a crucial role in the future.

Works Cited America’s adventurous and majestic parks. [videorecording] /

[presented by] Questar Video Imprint Portland, OR: Encounter Productions;

distributed by Questar Video, Chicago, IL, 1995, 1 cassette, 85 min, col, VHS.

Cong. Rec. 21 Nov. 1991: Y4.IN8/14:102-46. United States. Cong. Subcommittee on

National Parks and Public Lands of the Committee on Interior and Insular

Affairs. National Park Service 75th Anniversary Symposium recommendations.

Washington: GPO, 1992. Lovett, Francis N. National Parks: Rights and the Common

Good. Oxford: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 1998. Sellars, Richard

West. Preserving Nature in the National Parks: A History. New Haven: Yale

University Press, 1997.