Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, recently conducted a study that encompassed all 417 National Parks in the United States. On average, temperatures increased at two times the rate in National Parks as compared to other regions, and rainfall has fallen dramatically in recent years: 12% of the national park area has been affected as compared to 3% of the US. This trend is expected to continue, if not addressed. Scientists predict that the average temperature could increase by sixteen degrees Fahrenheit by 2100, which would make National Parks inhabitable for many plants and small animals, effectively destroying ecosystems.

 For example, Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park is being hit particularly hard by rising temperatures. The ice cover of Glacier Bay National Park has decreased 11% between 1952 and 2010 and continues to shrink, losing 1.99m/yr over the entire surface of the glaciers.

 In order to combat these rapidly rising temperatures, governments should pass legislation reducing carbon dioxide emissions and promote reforestation to increase the rate of carbon fixation. If you are interested in protecting our national parks and indeed our planet from the ravages of climate change, consider either getting involved with or donating to the National Resources Defense Council, the National Park Service, or the Nature Conservancy.

Sources:

“Climate at Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the

Interior, www.nps.gov/stateoftheparks/glba/naturalresources/climate.cfm.

Flatt, Courtney. “Study: Climate Change Hits National Parks Hard.” Jefferson Public Radio, 25

Sept. 2018, www.ijpr.org/post/study-climate-change-hits-national-parks-hard#stream/0.

Manke, Kara. “National Parks Bear the Brunt of Climate Change.” Berkeley News, UC Berkeley,

24 Sept. 2018, www.news.berkeley.edu/2018/09/24/national-parks-bear-the-brunt-of-climate-change/.   

Patrick Gonzalez et al 2018 Environ. Res. Lett. 13 104001, 24 September 2018,

http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/aade09