National Park Service

Search and rescue crew leaders from national parks across the West converged at Zion this week to share tips and tricks for how to keep people safe.

The slump in Utah park tourism comes as American politics and rhetoric keep many international visitors away. Locals around the parks are feeling the impact.

A Trump executive order directs the National Park Service to review displays and signs that may cast the American people or landscapes in a negative light. Critics call it an “attack on the discipline of history itself.”

Conservationists view the Trump administration’s move as another attack on the national parks. But southeast Utah officials say there may be other ways to ease crowding at Arches.

Socha is a president for parks and resorts at Buffalo, New York-based Delaware North. The company provides services in at least six national parks, including Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Shenandoah.

Millions of people visit Utah’s national parks for their awe-inspiring views, but air pollution often gets in the way. Federal moves to reverse emission-cutting policies could put the parks’ air even more at risk.

An executive order from President Donald Trump calls on the National Park Service to increase entry fees for visitors from abroad. In Utah, international tourism is big business, but local officials believe higher fees are unlikely to keep people away.

Zion National Park’s staff numbers haven’t kept up with rising visitation, and the Trump administration’s federal hiring freeze hasn’t helped. Park officials say visitors should help prevent search and rescue operations by planning ahead.

All but one of Utah’s Mighty Five national parks had an increase in visitors from the previous year. At the same time, concerns linger about how federal job cuts might impact park crowds.

An estimated 1,000 National Park Service employees have been fired so far. That includes at least 20 rangers, by one unofficial count, from Utah’s popular and busy national parks.

The February mass firing of National Park Service employees has hit parks in southern Utah, including Zion and Bryce Canyon. That’s spurring worries about long lines and crowds as the parks’ busy season ramps up.

Utah’s national park lands see over 15 million visitors each year, and that number continues to grow. Zion National Park is the country’s third-most visited park.