The presidential administration fired employees of the National Parks Service in February, making nature-loving students wary of new changes with their upcoming trips to Arizona parks.
Among the gust of firings and hiring freezes during the new administration were about 1,000 national park workers, according to The Associated Press. Following the firings, about 700 park workers have submitted their resignations in protest, according to the National Parks Conservation Association. Demonstrations have also taken place at several wilderness areas throughout the state.
"We're really losing quality park experiences, and students at ASU who go for Spring break to different parks are going to see the effects," said Sanober Mirza, the Arizona program manager for the NPCA.
Mirza said services and parks programs are going to be affected by the recent loss of staff. Programs focused on educating students could be terminated, and several visitor centers could reduce hours. The Saguaro National Park has closed its visitor center every Monday until further notice.
"The parks really need to be fully staffed to be operational," Mirza said. "Every NPS employee is an essential employee for our parks to operate."
Students visiting natural preserves should prepare for longer lines at entrance gates, especially at more popular parks, Mirza said.
"They can expect more trash; bathrooms might be closed or in poor conditions," Mirza said. "There's not even enough staff to maintain those facilities."
New park protocols may affect the Arizona Outdoors Club, which travels to national parks about five times a year, according to Trystan Theis, a senior studying business data analytics and the president of Arizona Outdoors Club.
When attending the parks, Theis said the Arizona Outdoors Club brings about 15 to 20 students to camp and explore.
One of the club's most recent trips was to Yosemite during fall break. They camped at the park for about four days to see "all that Yosemite has to offer," Theis said.
"If they (students) can't access all the resources... that would impact experience, especially in an area of natural beauty," Theis said.
When hiking the Grand Canyon, Theis said people can suffer from heat exhaustion, causing visitors to rely on a medical team for their safety.
"If that's affected, there would potentially be severe impacts on people," Theis said.
Mirza is also worried that visitors may be less safe because park rangers are all trained in different skills and have different backgrounds, making it difficult to replace each other.
Mirza said one of the Arizona parks lost a resident botanist, increasing concern about plans for protection against invasive species. Mirza also said the cuts could affect the longevity and long-term protection of wilderness areas, as well as the operation of national park services.
Arizona is home to 22 national parks, with three of the most popular ones being Saguaro, the Petrified Forest and the Grand Canyon.
Theis said he has been going to a national park about three times a year since he was a teenager. His next visit in the Spring is to the Grand Canyon, a trip he makes annually.
"I'm anticipating longer wait lines, maybe the park isn't as cleanly as it used to be," Theis said.
Mindy Riesenberg is the chief communications officer of the Grand Canyon Conservancy, the nonprofit partner of the Grand Canyon.
She said the Grand Canyon is working with the nonprofit to analyze which positions need to be filled at the park along with its most critical needs.
Riesenberg said the park is asking visitors to practice Hike Smart and Leave No Trace principles because there may not be as many people employed to clean or supervise trails.
Both Mirza and Theis emphasized that the national parks go beyond the boundaries of political party principles. They said Americans who are both Democrat and Republican appreciate and value the parks, marking their significance to U.S. culture.
According to a recent poll taken in December 2024 by the Grand Canyon Trust, 83% of registered Arizona voters favor the national parks and 89% favor the Grand Canyon National Monument.
"It really transcends every divide across America and national parks are really important to that story and something that Americans can agree on," Mirza said.
Not only are national parks prominent within the country's culture, they also have a big impact on the economy.
According to a report from the NPS, the parks have increasingly contributed billions to the U.S. economy — a total output of about $50 billion in 2022. Of this, the Grand Canyon was responsible for about $1 billion.
For every dollar put into the parks, about $10 comes out of it, according to the NPS.
"Park funding has been dwindling for years, and it's important to remember that the national parks are an investment, particularly here in Arizona," Mirza said. "It makes sense to not only fund our parks but to staff fully."
Edited by George Headley, Sophia Braccio and Natalia Jarrett.
Reach the reporter at ehprest1@asu.edu and follow @ellis_reports on X.
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Ellis is a sophomore studying journalism and mass communication. This is her first semester with The State Press. She has also worked at Arizona PBS and Blaze Radio.
