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News.com.au
2 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Australian company Intrepid Travel fights back against Donald Trump threat to US national parks
An Australian company is fighting back against Donald Trump's planned upheaval of US national parks. Since US President Donald Trump took office, more than 1000 park workers have been laid off (more than 700 others took buyouts), and more are expected to be let go. There is also a proposal to cut more than $US1 billion ($A1.5 billion) in federal funding for the US National Parks Service (nearly 40 per cent of the agency's current budget). NPS oversees 85 million acres of federal land and there are 433 sites in the National Park System, with parks in every state. National Park Conservation Association president Theresa Pierno described Mr Trump's proposed budget plan as 'catastrophic,' arguing that the 'national park system would be completely decimated'. Mr Trump wants to see some parks (that the White House describes as 'not 'national parks' in the traditionally understood sense') go to the states, but there are concerns states don't have the resources to maintain the parks, which will force them to close. The White House claims the proposed budget would 'continue supporting many national treasures, but there is an urgent need to streamline staffing and transfer certain properties to state-level management to ensure the long-term health and sustainment of the national park system'. Aussie-born company fights back A Melbourne-born global travel company, which runs tours across 18 US national parks, has made its stance clear. Speaking to on Thursday, Intrepid Travel's Leigh Barnes described national parks as 'incredibly important' to the US and said the White House's massive proposed funding cuts are 'putting access at risk'. 'We need healthy, vibrant national parks for our business, and also the impact of not having tourism go to national parks in the USA is going to put local businesses underground,' said Mr Barnes, an Australian who relocated to Seattle this year to take up the role of managing director of the Americas. In response to the Trump Administration's actions, Intrepid has now launched limited edition 'Active-ism' trips in the parks, hosted by influential activists and local guides. The trips are about $US500-$600 ($A770-$920) cheaper than a standard itinerary, despite the addition of an activist. 'That has been a deliberate focus, making them as accessible as possible,' Mr Barnes said. 'They're not going to be the world's greatest profit generator for the organisation, but that's not the purpose.' Intrepid will also donate $US50,000 ($A77,000) on behalf of its travellers to nongovernmental organisations protecting the US national parks. Intrepid has 26 trips across 18 national parks, and employs 200 local guides and 60 staff there. The company has taken more than 20,000 travellers and expects to host another 5000 this year. Mr Barnes explained that it's not just direct jobs at the US National Parks Service at risk. 'They (national parks) are absolutely amazing economic drivers for these areas. Having these national parks creates jobs in and around the national parks ecosystem. Not just the national parks employees but all the little smaller businesses and ecosystems it supports,' he said. He added: 'They're a massive pride and icon in the USA. 'We want to ensure these amazing parts of the USA are not just here for this generation but the generations beyond.' Mr Barnes said the more people who experience nature, the more that are likely to advocate for these spaces, so his team simply asked themselves, 'how do we encourage more people to go out to national parks?'. The Active-ism trips include two five-day 'Zion and The Grand Canyon' trips hosted by public lands advocate Alex Haraus in November and environmental advocate Wawa Gatheru in April next year, and then two six-day 'Yellowstone and The Grand Tetons' trips hosted by climate educator Michael Mezzatesta and environmental author Leah Thomas in June next year. The target market is Americans but anyone can book. Discussions guests can expect include the current threats facing US national parks, the impact of climate change, Indigenous land rights, equity in outdoor spaces, and how to turn awareness into advocacy. Mr Barnes, previously Intrepid's chief customer officer in Melbourne, took on leading the Americas side of the business at a challenging time for US tourism. March — the same month Mr Barnes relocated his family to the States — saw the sharpest drop in Australians travelling to the US since during the height of the Covid pandemic, according to US International Trade Administration statistics. Australian visitor numbers fell 7 per cent in March this year, compared to March 2024 — the biggest drop since March 2021. Flight Centre and Intrepid Travel told last month bookings to the US had dropped significantly as Aussies, Canadians and Europeans choose to travel elsewhere. Globally, Intrepid saw a year-on-year 9 per cent decline in US sales for the first four months of the year. US sales for Australian and New Zealand travellers in particular were down 13 per cent. April alone was down 44 per cent on last year. But other areas such as South America are 'booming'. As a result, Mr Barnes said his team had increased their focus on domestic travel within the US, promoting the right products at the right time, and increasing their brand presence (last week Intrepid became an official partner of the Seattle Storm WNBA team). All eyes on American tourism The global tourism industry is keeping a close eye on the impact of Mr Trump's strict border stance and other controversial government policies like sweeping tariffs are having on travel. On Thursday, Mr Trump signed a new travel ban banning people from 12 countries to 'protect Americans from dangerous foreign actors'. The ban targets nationals of Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Flight Centre CEO and founder Graham Turner told it was an 'unsettled climate' impacting business travel, while tourists worry about passport control and others simply don't want to go to the US 'because they don't like what Donald Trump's doing'. Tourism Economics — which forecasts foreign traveller arrivals in the US will sharply decline this year resulting in a loss of $9 billion in spending — said decisions from the Trump Administration are creating a 'negative sentiment shift toward the US among travellers'. The travel data company's April report cited Mr Trump's stance on border security and immigration as one of the factors discouraging visits. Mr Trump rejects the notion that the country's tourism industry is in any trouble — saying 'tourism is way up'. Security checks at US airports have garnered much attention in recent months amid Mr Trump's 'enhanced vetting' for arrivals at US airports and cases of tourists being denied entry on arrival, and at times, strip searched and thrown in prison. Former NSW police officer Nikki Saroukos is one of those people who recently travelled to the US using an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) under the Visa Waiver Program and was deported, but first she had to spend a night in a federal prison. She said she was subjected to invasive searches and humiliating treatment for trying to spend time with her US military husband stationed in Hawaii. The US Department of Homeland Security later issued what it described as a 'fact check' on X after she went public with the ordeal, accusing her of having 'unusual activity on her phone, including 1000 deleted text messages from her husband'. Homeland Security said 'officers determined that she was travelling for more than just tourism'. But Ms Saroukos strongly denies having any plans to live permanently in the US. The Sydney resident, who married her husband Matt in January after a whirlwind long-distance romance, told she was 'in disbelief at how ridiculous' the statement was and claimed that some of the information included had been 'twisted'. Why denied tourists can end up in federal prison CBP has long had strong powers to deny entry, detain and deport foreigners at their discretion when travellers arrive in the country even if they have a valid visa or ESTA. However, what we are seeing under the Trump administration is described as 'enhanced vetting'. Australians are being warned to not assume they are exempt to more intense checks, including inspections of emails, text messages or social media accounts at the airport. Melissa Vincenty, a US immigration lawyer and Australian migration agent who is managing director of Worldwide Migration Partners, told recently that being taken to federal prison with no criminal record, no drugs or anything that is a danger to society is the reality of being denied entry to the US in Hawaii. Ms Vincenty, a dual-citizen who was a deportation defence lawyer in Honolulu before moving to Australia, explained the state did not have an immigration facility so people were taken to the Federal Detention Center Honolulu, where there was no separate wing for immigration. It meant tourists who were denied entry to the US could be held alongside those awaiting trial — or who have been convicted and were waiting to be transferred to a mainland prison for serious federal crimes, such as kidnapping, bank robbery or drug crimes. 'It's like in the movies — you go there and there's bars, you get strip searched, all your stuff is taken away from you, you're not allowed to call anybody, nobody knows where you are,' Ms Vincenty told in April after the experience of two young German tourists being strip searched and thrown in prison made global headlines. Ms Vincenty said for Australians who were denied entry to the US in other locations like Los Angeles, San Francisco or Dallas, being held in detention facilities until the next available flight home was a real risk as there weren't constant return flights to Australia — meaning you might have to wait until the next day. If not taken to a detention facility, some travellers may stay sitting for hours in what is called a secondary inspection at the airport. A secondary inspection includes further vetting such as searching travellers' electronic devices. 'That period can last from half an hour to 15 hours or more,' she said.
Forbes
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
350 National Park Sites May Close, Advocacy Group Says
Clouds surround the super flower moon rising above rocks and Joshua trees in California's Joshua Tree National Park in 2021. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) Los Angeles Times via Getty Images The Trump administration's proposed budget cuts will be catastrophic and decimate America's cherished national parks, a parks advocacy group says. 'Proposed cuts of this magnitude could shutter at least 350 national parks sites across the country, effectively more than 75% of our park system,' says Theresa Pierno, the president and CEO of the National Parks Conservation Association. 'This proposal is an all-out assault on America's national parks.' This journalist repeatedly contacted the National Park Service for comment about proposed cutbacks and received no response. The email link for media on the federal government website didn't work, and an email sent to Angela Gonzales, who is listed as the associate director of communications, went unanswered. Phone calls to the agency rang without a person answering, and, when an answering machine eventually kicked in, it didn't identify the agency. The answering machine said, 'Please leave a message for,' and then went blank until a beep to leave a message. The National Parks Conservation Association says the Trump administration's budget proposal calls for a cut of more than $1 billion to the National Park Service, including a $900 million cut to parks' operations. Such a cut would be the largest proposed cut in the park service's 109-year history, the association says. Besides the proposed $900 million cutback to parks' operations, the proposed budget would eliminate $73 million to park construction funding, $77 million to recreation and preservation funding and $197 million to historic preservation funding, the advocacy group says. Despite the national parks' 'soaring popularity and the economic and cultural value they provide,' the Trump administration 'continues to systematically dismantle the Park Service — freezing hiring, forcing resignations, eliminating purchasing ability, canceling leases and banning travel,' the group says. With a proposed future workforce reduction, 'the worst is yet to come,' the association says. National Park Service ranger Jill Staurowsky looks out from the South Rim while giving a tour to visitors in February at Grand Canyon, Arizona. (Photo by) Getty Images 'The president's proposed budget plan is beyond extreme,' Pierno says. 'It is catastrophic. Every action taken so far by this administration has chipped away at national parks and their staff, but this budget is the final blow. If enacted by Congress, our national park system would be completely decimated.' The National Park Service website says 'national parks contain many of our nation's most treasured landscapes, from the majestic mountain ranges of Alaska to the vast prairies of the Everglades.' A review of the website by this journalist shows a lack of practical information for people who wish to visit the nation's 433 national park units. The website has a 'Frequently Asked Questions' page that is blank. Another page for national parks' events provides no information. The National Parks Service is an agency within the Department of the Interior. An Interior Department spokesperson provided the following response in late March to Newsweek. "The National Park Service is hiring seasonal workers to continue enhancing the visitor experience as we embrace new opportunities for optimization and innovation in workforce management. We are focused on ensuring that every visitor has the chance to explore and connect with the incredible, iconic spaces of our national parks. NPS is working closely with the Office of Personnel Management to ensure we are prioritizing fiscal responsibility for the American people. As always, NPS will continue to provide critical services and deliver excellent customer service.'
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump proposes cutting funds for national parks, turning some over to states. See Florida sites
President Trump's budget blueprint calls for $163 billion in spending cuts to non-military programs, including $1.2 billion for national parks, monuments, historic sites, seashores and trails. That's about 25% of the park service's budget of $4.8 billion. The 2026 budget plan also proposes turning some national park sites over to states, removing them from the National Park System. The proposal quickly came under fire. 'This is the most extreme, unrealistic and destructive National Park Service budget a President has ever proposed in the agency's 109-year history," said Theresa Pierno, president and CEO of the National Parks Conservation Association, a nonprofit advocacy group. A letter from the president's Office of Management and Budget to the Committee on Appropriations outlined Trump's recommendations on "discretionary funding levels" for fiscal year 2026. "The recommended funding levels result from a rigorous, line-by-line review of FY 2025 spending, which was found to be laden with spending contrary to the needs of ordinary working Americans and tilted toward funding niche non-governmental organizations and institutions of higher education committed to radical gender and climate ideologies antithetical to the American way of life. "We also considered, for each program, whether the governmental service provided could be provided better by State or local governments (if provided at all). Just as the Federal Government has intruded on matters best left to American families, it has intruded on matters best left to the levels of government closest to the people, who understand and respect the needs and desires of their communities far better than the Federal Government ever could." That was the case in the proposal when it came to the National Park Service. "The National Park Service responsibilities include a large number of sites that are not 'National Parks,' in the traditionally understood sense, many of which receive small numbers of mostly local visitors, and are better categorized and managed as State-level parks. "The Budget would continue supporting many national treasures, but there is an urgent need to streamline staffing and transfer certain properties to State-level management to ensure the long-term health and sustainmentof the National Park system." The budget plan suggests a cut of $900 million in fiscal year 2026 for park operations. More cuts proposed by Trump: National Park Service's Historic The plan recommended a $158 million cut in the National Park Service's Historic Preservation Fund, saying, "Many historic preservation projects have matching funds from State, local, and private sources, rendering the Historic Preservation Fund highly duplicative. Further, the projects are often of local, rather than national, significance." National Park Service Construction: "The Biden Administration wasted Federal funding on construction projects at sites that are more appropriately managed at the local level. This reduction (of $73 million) complements the Administration's goals of federalism and transferring smaller, lesser visited parks to State and tribal governments. At the same time, the Budget allows NPS to prioritize larger projects at the Nation's crown jewel parks." National Park Service : "Many National Recreation and Preservation grants are already supported by State, local, and private sector efforts, including large amounts of mandatory funding through the Land and Water Conservation Fund Stateside Grants. Further, these projects are not directly tied to maintaining national parks or public lands." The recommended cut was $77 million. "Cuts of this magnitude would devastate our national parks, further pushing them into a financial hole," the National Park and Conservation Association posted on its website. "For generations, Americans have believed that some places are so special that they should be protected for all time, and for all to experience. Any effort to hand many of these sites over to the states is a betrayal, and the American people won't stand for it," Pierno said. According to the National Park Service, there are 433 national park sites in the United States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Guam. Sixty-three of the sites have national park as part of their name. According to the National Park Service, there are 11 national park sites in Florida: Big Cypress National Preserve Biscayne National Park Canaveral National Seashore Castillo de San Marcos National Monument De Soto National Memorial Dry Tortugas National Park Everglades National Park Fort Caroline National Memorial Fort Matanzas National Monument Gulf Islands National Seashore Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve ➤ See all 11 national park sites in Florida According to Smithsonian Magazine, two Florida parks made the list for the most and least visited in 2024. The top 10 most-visited National Park Service sites in 2024 were: Golden Gate National Recreation Area (17,187,508 visits) Blue Ridge Parkway (16,733,639 visits) Great Smoky Mountains National Park (12,191,834 visits) Gateway National Recreation Area (8,929,035 visits) The Lincoln Memorial (8,479,349 visits) Gulf Islands National Seashore (7,801,176 visits) Natchez Trace Parkway (7,364,833 visits) George Washington Memorial Parkway (6,782,717 visits) Lake Mead National Recreation Area (6,412,854 visits) Vietnam Veterans Memorial (5,295,711 visits) The 10 least-visited National Park Service sites in 2024 were: Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve (11,907 visits) North Cascades National Park (16,485 visits) Kobuk Valley National Park (17,233 visits) Lake Clark National Park and Preserve (18,505 visits) National Park of American Samoa (22,567 visits) Isle Royale National Park (28,806 visits) Katmai National Park and Preserve (36,230 visits) Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve (81,670 visits) Dry Tortugas National Park (84,873 visits) Great Basin National Park (152,068 visits) There are 20 different national park types that fall under the protection of the National Park Service. They are: National Monuments: 87 National Historical sites: 76 National Historical Parks: 63 National Parks: 63 National Memorials: 31 National Preserves: 19 National Recreation Areas: 18 National battlefields: 11 National Seashores: 10 National Wild and Scenic Rivers and Riverways: 10 Other designations: 10 National Military Parks: 9 National Scenic Trails: 6 National Battlefield Parks: 4 National Parkways: 4 National Rivers: 4 National Lakeshores: 3 National Reserves: 2 National Battlefield Site: 1 International Historic Sites: 1 Contributing: Dinah Volyes Pulver, USA TODAY This article originally appeared on Florida Today: National parks US, Florida. Trump plan cuts budget, state transfer
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
1,000 park workers who were fired in DOGE cuts are reinstated
Park rangers fired from the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and Channel Islands National Park heard Thursday that their jobs will soon be reinstated. The nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Assn. said in a news release Thursday that as a result of recent court orders, "the National Park Service is authorized to fully reinstate 1,000 previously terminated probationary employees at national parks across the country." Fired workers included rangers, law enforcement officers, firefighters and other critical personnel, the group said. Read more: National park layoffs assailed by off-duty rangers and community members in SoCal protests "The American people love our national parks and want them protected for future generations," Theresa Pierno, the group's president and chief executive, said in a statement. "It's time the administration listened. We won't stop fighting until these attacks on our national parks come to an end." Workers contacted Thursday by The Times declined to speak on the record, fearing it would jeopardize their reinstatements. On Feb. 14, about 1,000 National Park Service permanent workers who hadn't finished their probationary period were fired as part of a waste-cutting effort led by Tesla CEO and billionaire Elon Musk's White House advisory team, which he calls the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. The decision was the second park-related cut by the Trump administration that was met with widespread opposition spanning the political spectrum. In January, thousands of seasonal park workers were told they wouldn't be hired this season. Public outcry in defense of national parks broke out in the form or protests and social media posts, and the Trump administration walked back the effort about a month later. On March 1, thousands of people — including hundreds at local fixtures like Joshua Tree National Park, the Channel Islands Ventura office and the Santa Monica Mountains — rallied at parks to show their support for fired permanent park workers. Another nationwide "Protect the Parks" rally is planned for Saturday with events scheduled in Calabasas and Ventura. Fired workers included about eight staffers at Santa Monica Mountains near L.A. and six at Channel Islands. At the Santa Monica Mountains, fired workers included an emergency response worker and a park ranger trained in land management. Read more: Amid staff cuts and budget chaos, more than 700 national park employees take buyout Two archaeologists tasked with surveying land at the Santa Monica Mountains were also fired. Katie Preston, one of the archaeologists fired, told The Times at the March rally that it was unclear how the $400,000 allocated for them to survey the park for cultural resources would be spent without any staff left to do the job. Only 30% of the Santa Monica Mountains have been surveyed, meaning potential historical landmarks and sacred Indigenous sites remain unknown and unprotected. At Channel Islands, marine scientist Kenan Chan, who surveyed the park's kelp forests and tide pools, was fired. Channel Islands National Park has collected data through its full-time staff and seasonal workers on its kelp forests and tide pools since 1982. His firing meant only two full-time workers were left to conduct the research. Chan said Thursday on Instagram after a "month full of uncertainty, stress, sadness and frustration" he was grateful to be headed back to work. Chan thanked everyone who had rallied to support the fired workers. Read more: National park visits hit record high last year, agency reports as it endures deep cuts "I still have not received any official documents confirming I am once again an employee, but I am hopeful," Chan said. "We are back. We did it." Park ranger Lydia Jones, who was fired from Badlands National Park in South Dakota, said Thursday on Instagram that she was thrilled to share that she had been reinstated but was still concerned by the possibility of future cuts. Read more: What park workers firings mean for L.A.'s natural wonders "With plans for wide-scale reductions in force throughout federal government, there is still the possibility that my position could be cut again," Jones said. "However, one thing is certain: I will continue to do my job to the absolute best of my ability, as long as I am able, in service to the American people." Sign up for The Wild newsletter to get weekly insider tips on the best of our beaches, trails, parks, deserts, forests and mountains. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
1,000 park workers who were fired in DOGE cuts are reinstated
Park rangers fired from the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and Channel Islands National Park heard Thursday that their jobs will soon be reinstated. The nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Assn. said in a news release Thursday that as a result of recent court orders, "the National Park Service is authorized to fully reinstate 1,000 previously terminated probationary employees at national parks across the country." Fired workers included rangers, law enforcement officers, firefighters and other critical personnel, the group said. "The American people love our national parks and want them protected for future generations," Theresa Pierno, the group's president and chief executive, said in a statement. "It's time the administration listened. We won't stop fighting until these attacks on our national parks come to an end." Workers contacted Thursday by The Times declined to speak on the record, fearing it would jeopardize their reinstatements. On Feb. 14, about 1,000 National Park Service permanent workers who hadn't finished their probationary period were fired as part of a waste-cutting effort led by Tesla CEO and billionaire Elon Musk's White House advisory team, which he calls the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. The decision was the second park-related cut by the Trump administration that was met with widespread opposition spanning the political spectrum. In January, thousands of seasonal park workers were told they wouldn't be hired this season. Public outcry in defense of national parks broke out in the form or protests and social media posts, and the Trump administration walked back the effort about a month later. On March 1, thousands of people — including hundreds at local fixtures like Joshua Tree National Park, the Channel Islands Ventura office and the Santa Monica Mountains — rallied at parks to show their support for fired permanent park workers. Another nationwide "Protect the Parks" rally is planned for Saturday with events scheduled in Calabasas and Ventura. Fired workers included about eight staffers at Santa Monica Mountains near L.A. and six at Channel Islands. At the Santa Monica Mountains, fired workers included an emergency response worker and a park ranger trained in land management. Two archaeologists tasked with surveying land at the Santa Monica Mountains were also fired. Katie Preston, one of the archaeologists fired, told The Times at the March rally that it was unclear how the $400,000 allocated for them to survey the park for cultural resources would be spent without any staff left to do the job. Only 30% of the Santa Monica Mountains have been surveyed, meaning potential historical landmarks and sacred Indigenous sites remain unknown and unprotected. At Channel Islands, marine scientist Kenan Chan, who surveyed the park's kelp forests and tide pools, was fired. Channel Islands National Park has collected data through its full-time staff and seasonal workers on its kelp forests and tide pools since 1982. His firing meant only two full-time workers were left to conduct the research. Chan said Thursday on Instagram after a "month full of uncertainty, stress, sadness and frustration" he was grateful to be headed back to work. Chan thanked everyone who had rallied to support the fired workers. "I still have not received any official documents confirming I am once again an employee, but I am hopeful," Chan said. "We are back. We did it." Park ranger Lydia Jones, who was fired from Badlands National Park in South Dakota, said Thursday on Instagram that she was thrilled to share that she had been reinstated but was still concerned by the possibility of future cuts. "With plans for wide-scale reductions in force throughout federal government, there is still the possibility that my position could be cut again," Jones said. "However, one thing is certain: I will continue to do my job to the absolute best of my ability, as long as I am able, in service to the American people." Sign up for The Wild newsletter to get weekly insider tips on the best of our beaches, trails, parks, deserts, forests and mountains. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
