To really understand the importance of our protected areas, let’s start with a quick history lesson! In 1872, the U.S. Congress established Yellowstone National Park as the world’s first national park. This signaled a new way the world would view its land and, eventually, its seas. A nation absorbed in westward expansion had set aside for the first time in history, two million acres on which no one could lawfully settle, extract minerals or timber, or hunt. Over the years the progression of conservation continued and in 1916 Congress created the National Park Service as a bureau of the Department of the Interior, whose purpose was to provide a cohesive administration for the growing number of park lands. In 1933, by executive order, 63 national monuments and military sites were transferred to the National Park Service from the Forest Service and War Department. In 1961 a shift occurs when, for the first time, we go from relying solely on donated or federally owned lands to investing in our country’s treasures when Congress authorized funds for the purchase of lands for a national parkland. Flash forward to today, the National Park System has grown dramatically since the first parks were created. It now consists of more than 380 parks/protected areas in every state but Delaware. These parks preserve geologic splendors, historic sites and structures, recreational spaces in and around large urban areas, lakes and seashores, long-distance trails, free-flowing rivers, and places that chronicle the nation’s social history.
In the first blog, I focused on a smaller local park of much importance. Now I am switching gears to the largest form of park, a national park, to continue my research on the importance of preserved green spaces in our communities and the effects of urban sprawl on these vital areas. The national park I have chosen to visit and investigate is Saguaro National Park.
On March 1, 1933, Herbert Hoover signed a proclamation establishing Saguaro National Monument in the nearly empty desert, 15 miles east of the sleepy town of Tucson. This was a victory for both botanists and other scientists in Arizona who’d worked for years to protect this grandest stand of saguaros. These saguaro cacti are the West’s most iconic plant species, a symbol of the great frontier, and were already famous from countless silent movie westerns. Only two months later, President Franklin Roosevelt ordered that sixteen national monuments be transferred to the National Park Service and Saguaro began a long slow march to the treasured sanctuary it is today. Often the progress was painful: early rangers had to haul water from the center of town; cactus theft and smuggling were rampant, and ranchers allowed cows to trample young vulnerable species of plants. In addition, the aging of the cactus forest and lack of regeneration led to a widespread belief that the saguaro was a dying breed, like the frontier life it symbolized. Finally in 1994, Congress elevated Saguaro to National Park status.
The Saguaro National Park, which is part of the Sonoran Desert, currently encompasses 91,327 acres in its two districts. The Eastern Rincon Mountain District rises to over 8,000 feet and includes over 128 miles of trails and the Western Tucson Mountain District is generally lower in elevation with a denser saguaro forest. Census data taken from a survey in 2010 estimates that there are about 1.9-million saguaros within the current boundaries of Saguaro National Park. Saguaros (Carnegiea gigantea), which can only be found in the Sonoran Desert, are the largest cacti in North America -growing to a height of approximately 50 feet, and often weighing seven tons or more. These cacti are extremely slow growing ( taking 10 or more years to grow merely 6 inches), and are considered such an extremely important and sensitive species that they are under strict protection by the state of Arizona. In the early 20th century the very existence of the giant saguaro cactus in the American Southwest was being threatened. Shortly after the park was established, park rangers noticed a decline in the saguaros and split the park into various one mile sections to monitor the situation. It was found that change in ecosystem and climate, largely from anthropogenic (human caused) factors was the driving force behind this decline.
(Figure 1. Section 17 of Saguaro National park 75 years apart)
You may be wondering how can this be? Tucson, which is flanked by the Saguaro National park, had a population of only 35,000 when the park was created and was 15 miles from the border of the park. Now that Tucson has grown and prospered, urban sprawl has taken over the area. The population is now at 675,000 and continues to grow at a rate of 2.5% per year, with the city encroaching within a mile of the parks borders and plans for a high end resort community to be built 50 yards from the eastern unit of the park. Tucson’s march to the park gates could forever change the national monument. Wildlife, such as the mule deer, whose natural range extends beyond park bounds, will find highway traffic instead of tasty desert vegetation. Neighboring homeowners will likely bring nonnative plants and animals, which can creep into Saguaro, disrupting the balance that exists there. In the past 60 years, as the area has become more urbanized and habitat fragmentation has increased, there has been marked declines of much of the important wildlife in the area – a problem very similar to what I discussed in my first blog post regarding local parks.
While this IS a desert, I was shocked at how much biodiversity I found while hiking. The park supports thousands of invertebrates, and more than 325 vertebrates — including approximately 70 mammal species, 200 species of birds (including 18 species of hummingbirds), 50 reptile species (including 6 species of rattlesnakes), and 8 amphibian species. I was also pleasantly shocked on how many varieties of cactus, shrubs, and even small trees all co-existed in this area. However the challenge of maintaining this biodiversity has become underscored by the fact that since the 20th century many important species such as the desert bighorn sheep, Mexican gray wolves, jaguars, grizzly bears, and Gila top minnows have all been driven out and are now locally extinct. In an effort to mitigate the effects of urbanization and save the park, the National Park Service must regularly undertake many surveys, and scientific wildlife and habitat research to develop sustainable management plans for the area.
Here is a video of some of the beautiful park area I was able to hike through recently. Notice that while the park is listed as SAGUARO National Park, there are more species of different plants there than I personally ever expected to be. When one thinks of a desert, it is easy to conjure images in your head of desolation and the lack of thriving life. This thought was furthest from the truth though and in my time hiking I was able to keep track of at least 15 different species of cacti alone in any given spot. I even found an EXTREMELY rare Crested Saguaro (1 in 200,000 have this deformity). This was my first time in the desert, and it completely changed my view of the amount of life and biodiversity found in these areas.
(Figure 2. Compilation of photos from my recent adventure in Saguaro National Park)
National Parks don’t just provide beautiful areas to go hiking and camping in – they are important scientific research areas, provide vital ecosystem services for the surrounding areas, and even play an important economic role for local communities. Headwaters Economics, a popular independent, nonprofit research group whose mission is to improve community development and land management decisions in the West – has developed a system of tools to help the public better understand the important role protected public lands play in our economy. Essentially, the economic benefits of parks extend far beyond tourism and the greatest challenge we have is balancing sustainable growth. Beyond habitat and wildlife preservation, and the tourism industry they sustain, protected areas need to be recognized for the services they provide: mitigation of climate change and natural disasters, disease control, maintenance of water quality, and cultural services, including recreation, maintenance of historical or iconic landscapes, and protection of sacred natural sites.
Below is the breakdown of the economic impact of Saguaro National Park.
(Figure 3. Chart breaking down the economic value of Saguaro National Park in the Tucson area)
The situation at Saguaro is just one manifestation of an enormous problem. The National Park Service is increasingly affected by actions outside park boundaries that may have a tremendous impact on areas it is mandated to preserve and protect. Threats range from the encroachment of urban sprawl to air and water pollution from the surrounding areas. They also include oil, gas, and geothermal development, as well as clearcut logging and mining. Just like my previous post I want to underscore the importance of public involvement in saving vital areas such as these. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the National Parks Service and it is more imperative than ever for each and every one of us to be educated, aware, engaged and actively participate in the happening of our communities – as it creates a ripple effect that can reach from the smallest to the biggest parks. To quote the Lorax once more and drive home the importance of addressing the challenges we face, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s Not!”
May the Spirit and Splendor of our National Parks touch you all days of the year ahead!
Works Cited
Kenney, John. “Beyond Park Boundaries.” National Parks 66.7/8 (1991): 20. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 1 Apr. 2016.
Rasker, Ray. “Economic Impact of National Park Service Units.” Headwaters Economics – Economic Impact of National Park Service Units. Headwaters Economics, June 2015. Web. 1 Apr. 2016.<http://headwaterseconomics.org/public-lands/protected-lands/economic-impact-of-national-parks>.