Interior Secy: From Dying Trees To Melting Glaciers & Coastlines, Climate Impacts In Every Park

WASHINGTON — Interior Secretary Sally Jewell says she sees the impact of climate change at just about every national park she visits.

"In Historic Jamestowne, we've actually had 98 feet of coastline wash away, including half of what was a Civil War fort and some very critical Native American artifacts that have been there probably for 10,000 years," Jewell says. "Glaciers melting in Glacier National Park; Joshua trees dying in Joshua Tree National Park — and all these things are tied in to a changing climate."

As the Fourth of July holiday approaches — when many Americans head outdoors to camp, hike and barbecue — Jewell cites two 21st-century challenges for the national park system she oversees. One is to engage a younger generation that may be more interested in the digital world than the natural one. The other is to respond to the changing landscape caused by climate change.

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"We're in the forever business; our charge in national parks is to preserve them unimpaired for future generations," she says. "But we are funded lurching from continuing resolution to continuing resolution." That is different from the business world she left, she says. "People accuse businesses of having a short-term mentality, but I'll tell you, businesses do strategic planning, and they think forward," something she says is "very difficult" to do in Washington. Another contrast: "In the private sector, you're rewarded for taking risks. In the public sector, you take risks and you're wrong, and people will hammer you. So it makes you very risk-averse."

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http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2014/06/30/capital-download-interior-secretary-sally-jewell-climate-change-national-parks/11778421/