Former National Park Service leaders and advocates slammed the Trump administration Tuesday for keeping parks open to visitors during the government funding lapse, warning of demoralized staff and damage to park property.
“This shutdown is a drain on our parks and public lands, the visitors, and the gateway communities,” said Sue Fritzke, a member of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks’s executive council and a retired park superintendent of Capitol Reef National Park. “The administration is threatening imminent mass layoffs during the shutdown, as well as potential loss of back pay while these employees are forced to be on furlough.”
Several former park superintendents on a call with reporters agreed, pointing to previous shutdowns where vandalism occurred to park property and both human waste and garbage piled up in some locations. The former leaders were also worried about rangers missing paychecks and facing the threat of layoffs from the Trump administration.
“If the government is closed, our parks should be closed,” said Emily Thompson, the coalition’s executive director and a former park ranger.
