Conservation America
What writer Wallace Stegner called America’s “best idea,” protecting natural areas for the benefit of all, not just the wealthy few, has endured for more than 150 years. Now we’re working to protect these special places from Congress’s worst idea—selling them off to the highest bidder.
America’s national parks should be protected, not shortchanged
From the Grand Canyon to the George Washington National Forest, our parks, forests, and public lands are a big part of what makes this country so great. They’re where we go to spend time outdoors with our families and friends, to hike, bike, fish and see wild animals.
Pollution, logging, overdevelopment
Yet instead of helping to protect and preserve our parks and other special places for our kids and future generations, some shortsighted leaders in Congress have another idea. They’ve proposed to stop new protections for precious landscapes like the Grand Canyon. They want to eliminate funding for our most successful open space program. And the Senate has even passed a measure to sell off a bulk of our public lands—from national forests, to wildlife refuges, to wilderness areas—to the highest bidder.
A lasting legacy
Environment America is bringing people together to urge our members of Congress to make preserving special places a priority and leave a lasting legacy for our parks.
Together, we can win
Members and supporters like you make it possible for our staff to conduct research, make our case to the media, testify in Washington, D.C., and build the grassroots support necessary to protect the places we love.
Key Facts
- Underfunded parks face crumbling infrastructure, reduced hours and threats ranging from overdevelopment, pollution, mining, drilling and logging that put wildlife and ecosystems at risk.
- There were more than 281 million recreational visits to our national parks last year, yet this year Congress slashed funding for all of our parks.
Latest Reports
- Trashing our Treasures: Congressional Assault on the Best of America
- Grand Canyon at Risk: Uranium Mining Doesn’t Belong Near Our National Treasures
- The Best of America Under Threat from Underfunding
- Quietly Paving Paradise: How Bush Policies Still Threaten America's National Forests
- Preserving America's Natural Heritage: Lessons From States' Efforts to Fund Open Space Protection