Due to the U.S. federal government shutdown, national parks have been left open and largely unattended. Since the shutdown began on December 21, brimming trashcans, overflowing toilets, and trespassing has been reported at many parks locations. On Sunday, the Department of the Interior announced they would be dipping into funds collected from entrance fees to pay for trash clean up, restroom maintenance, and additional law enforcement. Leaving trash out in the open could also upset the delicate balance parks must maintain between visitors and wildlife. “For the past couple of decades, the park service has worked hard to wean the black bear population from human food,” says former National Park Service director and current Berkeley Institute for Parks, People, and Biodiversity executive director Jon Jarvis. Once animals like bears or coyotes begin to associate humans with food, Jarvis says the risk that an animal could attack or have to be euthanized increases. Additionally, the National Park Service backlog includes $11.6 billion worth of deferred infrastructure projects, such as maintaining roads and waterways. Without entrance fees, parks are losing out on roughly $400,000 a day. Once the government reopens, Jarvis says park employees will be responsible for cleaning up the mess left by visitors, further delaying projects that have already been deferred. No news about any additional funding to assist in the clean-up has been announced.
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