Watching these past weeks as firefighters battled to stop wildfire from spreading into Yosemite National Park’s famous Mariposa Grove of giant sequoia trees was an urgent reminder of the large-scale threat climate change poses to our national parks.
Unfortunately, fires like the fast-moving Oak fire and the Washburn fire are the new reality for our parks in a warming world. National parks have been consistently understaffed and underfunded by Congress, making it impossible for preventive measures to be taken at an appropriate scale to combat climate emergencies that are now regular occurrences. As of Friday, the Forest Service plans to expedite sequoia protection. When President Joe Biden takes executive action to confront climate change, he should consider increasing funds overall to the national parks before damage happens that can’t be undone.
Before retiring, I spent 34 years working at Yosemite National Park until I was appointed superintendent of Joshua Tree National Park.
