Constraints on the Development of National Seashores and Lakeshores: A Political Perspective

Abstract

The National Park Act of 1916 presented the Park Service with the conflicting goals of preserving the natural features of park system units while simultaneously providing facilities to make them available to the public. Over the years many authors have characterized this conflict between preservation and use as a dilemma that defies resolution. A more realistic interpretation, however, is that Congress expected the Park Service to strike a balance in achieving both goals. Thus, Congress fully recognized that some destruction of natural features would be unavoidable and that some limitations would have to be placed on use. In effect, Congress delegated to the Park Service the authority to use its professional judgment in deciding how both goals would be met within each unit of the park system. Nevertheless, Congress also provided guidance to the Park Service by specifying that recreation areas, such as national seashores and lakeshores, should emphasize public use. In most cases, national seashores and lakeshores were initially set aside with the support both of preservationists and a variety of economic and developed recreation interests. It was generally understood by the latter interest groups that recreational developments would receive more emphasis within national seashores and lakeshores than in national parks and monuments.2 Once established, however, many national seashores and lakeshores remained relatively undeveloped. Consequently, some recreation groups have been denied access to these areas even though they assisted in their establishment. In this paper a historical overview of some political constraints involved in the development of national seashores and lakeshores will be presented, and a visitor survey of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Wisconsin will be