Alt Natchez Trace Parkway

06/06/2026

Under Trump, the Forest Service is gutting labs that cost ONE DOLLAR in rent so they can cram scientists into a Fort Collins office that costs taxpayers a million a year.

As reported by NPR, Trump's 2027 budget zeroes out Forest Service research entirely. Three hundred and nine million dollars, gone. Fifty-seven of the agency's seventy-seven research stations are on the chopping block.

These are the forests generations of Americans have hiked, hunted, camped, and prayed in. Sacred ground for almost anyone who's ever stepped outside in this country.

And the "efficiency" pitch? A scam.

The research station in Hilo, Hawaii sits on 30,000 acres the federal government rents for a one-time fee of ONE DOLLAR, locked in until 2067. The Michigan Tech lease? One dollar paid in 1963, free ever since. Another site costs the agency $600 a month for two rooms.

The destination they want everyone shipped to in Fort Collins runs taxpayers a million a year.

Read that again. They're closing dollar leases to expand a million-dollar lease.
Scientists in Baltimore have spent years planting white oak saplings that need three decades to mature. You can't FedEx a forest to Colorado. You can't manage a Hawaiian ecosystem from a cubicle in Utah.

Researchers told NPR they'll quit before they relocate. Which is the point.

Meanwhile, Trump has openly pledged to ramp up logging on federal land. Gut the scientists who document the damage, and there's nobody left to sound the alarm when ancient forests get clear-cut for profit.

These are the people who tell us when wildfire season turns deadly. Who track invasive beetles eating through pine. Who teach cities how to recycle dead trees instead of dumping them in landfills.

You don't dismantle the world's largest forestry research network because you're worried about a maintenance bill. You dismantle it because somebody plans to take a chainsaw to what the public owns and doesn't want a paper trail.

The forests don't belong to Tom Schultz. They don't belong to Trump. They belong to every American who has ever stood quiet under a hundred-year-old tree and understood, for one second, that some things are not for sale.

Defend them now, or explain it to your grandkids later.

05/30/2026

Damn a data center and their Ai too.

05/30/2026

Imagine that…

Have you been to Yosemite recently after it ended its reservation system? Well, the transition is proving to be chaotic.

Over the holiday weekend, visitors were met with long lines, limited parking, and crowded conditions throughout the park.

05/30/2026

When you wonder why the Natchez Trace Parkway facilities continue to be in disrepair, wonder no more…

President Donald Trump's administration is spending millions of NPS funds to cover bronze statues near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., in a layer of gold leaf ahead of the nation's 250th birthday celebration this summer.

The National Park Service awarded a $5 million contract in mid-April to a gilding studio in Maryland to repair four bronze horse statues — the Arts of War and Arts of Peace — and cover them in a thick layer of 23.75-karat gold leaf, according to a NOTUS report published on Friday, May 29.

The Department of the Interior, which oversees the National Park Service, awarded the contract without competition, citing a desire to complete the project by July 4, according to the report.

The development reflects the president's desire to leave his mark on a city he has repeatedly denigrated as “disgusting” and “ugly.” The administration has already spent millions on renovation projects throughout the nation's capital, including one to resurface the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

During a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, May 27, Trump announced plans to repaint the basin of the World War II Memorial's central fountain, which he said was “in pretty bad shape.” The president added during the meeting that he and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum have had “a lot of fun” reimagining historic landmarks around D.C.

A spokesperson for the Interior Department did not immediately return PEOPLE's request for comment on its regilding project.

“President Donald J. Trump is fulfilling his commitment to make D.C. Safe and Beautiful as shown by record low crime rates and renovations to fountains and parks across the capital," a spokesperson for the Interior Department told NOTUS.

“This administration is ensuring that Promises Made are Promises Kept,” the department said. “Across the District, residents and visitors are excited to see the city revitalized to the grand destination it was meant to be.”

Since his return to office last year, Trump has ordered a series of ambitious construction projects ahead of the nation's semiquincentennial in July.

In October 2025, the president unveiled plans to build a 250-foot triumphal arch between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial, inspired by Paris' Arc de Triomphe. A federal arts panel, whose members were appointed by Trump, approved the project last week, though the arch is already subject to a lawsuit from veterans, who have called the idea “disrespectful.”

The president has also sought to make significant changes to the White House, toppling its historic East Wing to make room for a massive, multimillion-dollar ballroom, paving over parts of the historic Rose Garden and redecorating the Executive Mansion's interior and exterior.

In December, the Kennedy Center's board of trustees voted unanimously to install Trump's name on the building's exterior, alongside that of former President John F. Kennedy, for whom the cultural institution is originally named.

A federal judge on Friday ordered Trump's name to be removed from the building within two weeks, and halted plans announced by the president in February to close the center for a “complete rebuilding.”

Construction began earlier this week on another of Trump's projects: an Ultimate Fighting Championship arena on the White House South Lawn. The upcoming invitation-only event, a bout of six mixed martial arts fights called “UFC Freedom 250,” is scheduled for Trump's 80th birthday on June 14.

Alt National Park Service

https://people.com/trump-administration-pays-millions-to-cover-bronze-horses-in-extra-thick-23-75-karat-gold-11987153

05/27/2026

Since the start of the second Trump administration in January last year, federal public land management agencies have lost 17% of their workforce due to both DOGE cuts, layoffs, and other reductions-in-force (RIFs).

These cuts have made it more challenging to address important public land issues, such as wildfires, watershed management, wildlife habitat restoration, visitor safety, and construction and maintenance projects.

On top of all those losses, more staffing cuts may be coming to public land agencies soon as the result of the Forest Service reorganization, new BLM policies, and other Interior reductions-in-force, which were announced last month.

In response to all these scenarios leading to further workforce reductions in our public land agencies, two Democratic representatives—Joe Neguse (CO) and Jared Huffman (CA)—have introduced a bill to prevent just that.

Their “Public Lands Workforce Stability Act” would prohibit any additional mass terminations at the Interior Department and Forest Service through Fiscal Year 2030 (which ends on September 30, 2030).

The bill "halts these attacks on our hard-working public servants and safeguards this workforce’s ability to manage critical programs that safeguard natural resources, protect communities, fight wildfires, and more," said Rep. Neguse. "It is imperative that we have a fully staffed workforce to care for our most treasured public lands."

The Public Lands Workforce Stability Act is supported by a range of public land groups and organizations:

- Association of National Park Rangers
- Backcountry Hunters and Anglers
- Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks
- Conservation Lands Foundation
- Grassroots Wildland Firefighters
- National Parks Conservation Association
- Sierra Club
- Trust for Public Land

Read more about the bill and support my work here: https://ourpubliclandsandwaters.substack.com/p/public-lands-workforce-stability

05/27/2026

Natchez National Historical Park is looking for volunteers to assist with its Juneteenth Luminary Event on June 19, 2026. Volunteers will support park staff with event setup, luminary placement, wayfinding light placement, visitor support during the event, and post-event breakdown and cleanup.

Volunteers may assist with:
Placing luminaries and wayfinding lights as directed by park staff
Supporting event setup before the program
Moving light materials, supplies, signs, or event equipment as directed
Assisting with visitor direction during the event
Helping maintain safe visitor flow in assigned areas
Assisting with post-event breakdown and cleanup
Retrieving lights, signs, and temporary event materials
Helping clean, dry, inventory, and store event materials the following business day
Reporting safety, visitor, or operational concerns to park staff
Volunteers will work under staff direction and will not be assigned duties requiring specialized training unless properly cleared and authorized.

Volunteers must be at least 18 years of age unless otherwise approved through park volunteer procedures. Volunteers may be required to wear park-approved volunteer identification while supporting the event.

For more information and to apply, click on the link below:

https://www.volunteer.gov/s/volunteer-opportunity/a09SJ00000Nv6t3YAB/melrose-juneteenth-luminary-program-volunteer-support

05/05/2026

“The Trump administration’s 2027 budget proposal seeks to reduce NPS’ funding for park operations by more than 25 percent — a reduction of around $736 million, according to the National Parks Conservation Association. Meanwhile, the administration recently offered a $17.4 million no-bid contract to a company to restore two fountains in Lafayette Square in Washington D.C. This was $12 million more than what the projects were estimated to have cost, according to a recent investigation by the New York Times.

The financial redirect comes at a time when the National Park Service’s 433 parks and historical sites are languishing among severe budget and staff cuts already enacted, and as the agency struggles to keep up with a massive deferred maintenance backlog. For park advocates, it’s another sign of the administration prioritizing D.C. aesthetics over the country’s natural and cultural resources, says Kristen Brengel, a longtime national park policy expert whose office overlooks the recently repaired fountains.”

Read the whole article on Outdoor Life, yes the magazine you read growing up!

https://www.outdoorlife.com/conservation/trump-administration-cutting-national-park-budget/?fbclid=IwdGRleARmLIhleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeVZ-twUz5Y9UqPdTkfTPJDa6S7FqoObUSxCGp3ntdyrUicu1zOTMmz9wc2kk_aem_F4y8Awnuyd0v7ehZsQqNfA

The Trump administration keeps reducing funding for the National Park Service while redirecting money to beautification projects in D.C.