There are seven main areas of environmental problems that face the National Park all around the world. These include overuse, insufficient funds for park operation, threats to wildlife, the concession systems, energy and mineral development, atmospheric pollution, and activities on neighboring lands. The major problem comes from the visitors coming to national parks that are increasing year after year. This massive increase in walker and vehicle traffic has resulted in trails becoming eroded from overuse, and garbage, noise, water pollution, and smog have all obstructed the beauty of most of the national parks. Atmospheric pollution and changes in climatic conditions are other issues that national parks face. Acid rain, Smog, Auto emissions, etc., are serious problems that are faced in these parks. In recent years, the national parks not only have to worry about internal factors that impact the health and operation of the park, but they also have to worry about activities that are on adjacent lands. Major activities such as mining, logging, and drilling for oil are all activities that produce pollution that can harm the delicate ecosystems within a national park. Agricultural activities result in pesticide pollution, and that are several instances where endangered species are seriously under threat due to contamination.
There are several steps taken by the government and non-government organizations to protect the national parks around the world. The first and foremost step is the increased awareness created through various programs. Secondly, the conservation movements such as fisheries and wildlife management, water, soil conservation, and sustainable forestry have contributed to some extent the protection of these parks. In the United States, conservation is seen as contradictory to environmentalism in that it intends to preserve natural resources specifically for their constant sustainable use. On the other hand, in other regions, conservation is used more broadly to comprise the location aside from natural areas and the active protection of wildlife for their intrinsic value.
Environmental education has helped to create awareness to a large extent and also helped to appreciate the need for conservation and responsible tourism. Additionally, stringent park guidelines help preserve the national parks for the future. However, there is still a lot to be done in this region, and there is a need for funding for the preservation of these recourses. But there are seemingly endless needs for the park’s preservation and always limited funding. Some of the most endangered national parks include Alaskan parks, Big Bend, New York’s Fire Island National Seashore, Frederick Douglass National Historic Site in Washington, DC, Glacier, Petrified Forest, Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee, Tennessee’s Stones River National Battlefield, Florida’s Everglades, Big Cypress, and Biscayne Bay, Yellowstone.