National Park Resources Research Articles

Making visibility degradation visible

Many decades ago the National Park Service (NPS) was formed to protect the special natural resources in Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Yosemite and many other national parks and monuments. The air, especially its cleanness and clarity, has always been an important resource within the parks, but in recent years it has suffered significantly because of the growth of cities, powerplants, smelters, and other sources of air pollution. The air pollution in cities became bad enough to result in several pieces of legislation since World War II, culminating in the 1970 Clean Air Act and its 1977 Amendments. The 1970 Act discussed the prevention of signifi: cant deterioration (PSD) of air cleaner than national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) and the protection of visibility,.but it did not provide a quantitative measure of the required protection. Since 1974, the nation has been divided into three classes for different amounts of protection against increases in sulfur dioxide (SO2) and total suspended particulates (TSP). Class I provides the most protection for areas intended to stay very clean, including 156 national parks and wilderness areas. Current law specifies small increments of SO2 and TSP concentrations that can legally be added by air pollution sources to the background concentrations in these areas. Class II areas are intended to provide moderate p r o t e c t i o n ' o f air cleaner than NAAQS, while Class III areas allow degradation of clean air to the NAAQS. Except for the federal mandatory Class I areas, the entire nation is Class II unless a change to Class I or Class III js pursued by a complex process of government approval. The 1977 Clean Air Act Amendments require regulations to protect visibility to be promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These regulations will be announced in 1980. Since the summer of 1978, the Visibility Research Center has installed and operated a network of fourteen visibility measuring sites for the NPS and the EPA. A manually operated multiwavelength telephotometer is the instrument used to measure the apparent contrast of distant mountains against the adjacent sky, very much like the eye views objects. These instruments allow the computat ion of visibility-related variables, including the extinction coefficient of the air along the sight path to the target and the visual range. Visual range is tile maximum distance one can see a black object viewed horizontally through a uniform layer of the atmosphere. These measured and computed variables cannot communicate the actual view of a vista under different air quality, but a picture can.

Les parcs nationaux d'espagne

This paper reviews the status, management and resources of National Parks in Spain. From 1954 to 1973 five new National Parks were created, in addition to those of Covadonga and Ordesa, covering 57,000 ha, although nearly all the land is now owned by the government. Resources provided for the maintenance of the Parks are inadequate and in 1974 amounted to only 12,200,000 pesetas (about £76,000 at 1974 exchange levels). In contrast much more money is provided for hunting and fishing reserves and more land is set aside for these purposes, although the benefits are enjoyed by a comparatively small number of people. Criticisms are made of the Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICONA) for its short-sighted management policy and lost opportunities to improve the administration of the Parks.

Depredation and deteriorating condition of <i>Shorea robusta</i> and <i>Terminalia alata</i> in Bardia National Park: an imperative to address park biodiversity sustainably

The paradigm shift in park management from a fortress mentality to the participatory concept is represented as a major transformation in the conservation discourse in Nepal. The involvement of local people in the management of resources in national parks has been significantly effective in attaining the conservation goals of conserving wildlife without compromising the basic forest resource needs of the local people. Nevertheless, some economically important species have not been afforded due consideration during such management. This study investigates the species composition and regeneration status of Shorea robusta (Sal) and Terminalia alata (Saj) in 4 Buffer Zone community Forests of Bardia National Park in Thakurdwara VDC in 1999/2000, 2002/2003 and 2005. The results reveal that Shorea robusta (Sal) and Terminalia alata (Saj) both constituted a large proportion of species diversity but that their regeneration from seedlings to established stages were low, suggesting vulnerability of this forest and their sustainability at risk due to their dwindling conditions. Immediate management concern of these economically important forest tree species is warranted. Keywords: Biodiversity, national park, shorea robusta, sustainability, terminalia alata doi: 10.3126/banko.v19i1.2181Banko Janakari, Vol. 19, No. 1, 37-40