I Vote for Less Technology at National Parks
In “Too much technology at the national parks?” Tom Mangan wonders about how more cell phone coverage and automated recordings of National Park tours will impact the Parks’ experience. He figures that it can’t hurt too much, “though I’d insist that any savings in ranger salaries go toward essentials like habitat preservation and trail maintenance.”
This isn’t the opinion I had expected from Tom, who somehow hikes almost every weekend and blogs about it all with great trail reviews and pics. Not that I had expected him to be against technology, like he says, “I find it odd to see rants against technology on a blog,” but I would have expected he’d know how the political process treats Parks and their funding. After all, the cost of all the ranger staff in all National Parks is probably lower than the cost of DoHS luggage screeners and x-ray equipment at a single LAX- or JFK-class airport - but those parks staffing costs are still frequent targets of budget cuts proposed in D.C.
Whether it’s cost savings from cutting Parks staff or earnings from leasing land to wireless tower operators, the money saved or made on National Parks operations just goes back into the general budget fund. Once that money is in the general budget fund the National Parks don’t stand much of a chance of seeing much of come back when they’re competing with legitimate national issues like anti-terrorism or social security (… note, I said they’re legitimate issues - but don’t want to get into what side of those issues I or any readers may fall on).
Regardless of where the funding goes, if technology replaces park rangers the National Parks will be drastically changed. Go ahead and add some cell towers, but a much bigger part of the National Parks experience than a view free of camouflaged cell towers is the people who work there and know the area and can tell stories about the backcountry and the legends that grew out of it; all far beyond what’s just on the placards or in the guided tour pamphlet. I think automating those jobs is as good as building roads and driving trams throughout all areas of the National Parks - a sure way to kill the spirit that may turn 1 of 10,000 children into a hiker, backpacker, or even a park ranger.
Since our government doesn’t get compromises very well, especially when money is remotely involved, maybe keeping the cell towers out is the only way to ensure that park rangers don’t go downhill the same way that tech support on the phone, now outsourced to India and China, has.
Photo credit: Jay Galvin on Flickr