In this edition of Eco Report, Julianna Dailey interviews Mark Nowotarski, an environmental and climate advocate, and other members of the Southwestern Indiana Citizens for Quality of Life organization about Indiana being considered a “sacrifice zone.” What does that mean?
As reported by NPR, national parks across the U.S. are bearing down on an uncertain season, as federal layoffs and staffing shortages threaten many of the services they provide for their millions of annual visitors, from reservations to cleanup to education. The National Park Service laid off some 1,000 employees on Feb. 14, just weeks before the start of the busy season in many of the country’s 63 national parks.
The layoffs, which targeted probationary workers, are part of a broader effort by President Trump and adviser Elon Musk to downsize the federal workforce. NPS officials have testified that the agency was already understaffed — the number of full-time employees dropped by about 15% between 2011 and 2022, forcing some visitor facilities to close or limit their hours.
A bit of welcome news came later that week when the Trump administration gave the NPS permission to fill temporary seasonal positions that had been paused due to the federal hiring freeze. The agency is allowed to fill a total of 7,700 positions — higher than the three-year average of 6,350 — according to a memo obtained by NPR. “Now that’s really good news,” said Bill Wade, the executive director of the Association of National Park Rangers and a retired superintendent of Shenandoah National Park.
“However, it’s not without problems, because at this sort of late date and the hiring timetable, I think there’s going to be some difficulty getting some of those positions on board in the parks before the summer season hits.” Between the paperwork, background checks, training regimens and housing searches, experts worry many seasonal positions won’t get filled — in general, let alone by summertime. Busy season varies between parks, though generally runs May through September in colder areas and can start as soon as March in warmer parts of the country.
The influx of seasonal workers can more than double the number of park staff in a typical year, Wade said. And their absence will surely be felt by visitors, since they perform such critical functions. The South Bend Times says the only national park in Indiana, the Indiana Dunes National Park, is at risk of being tarnished this year. Here’s what we know about the local impact of President Donald Trump’s aim to slash 5% to 10% of the federal workforce nationwide, including at national parks across the U.S.
Work to restore natural habitats in the Indiana Dunes could seize up or diminish this year. Visitor areas could look shabby or unkempt, Betsy Maher, executive director of the advocacy group Save the Dunes, says. And, ironically, the cost-saving layoffs by Trump and Elon Musk could reduce the number of employees who collect entrance fees. Those fees were enough to support $1.86 million in park projects last year, Maher says.
A story by WFIU concerns a bill before the legislature about invasive plants. An Indiana fund to help landowners reduce water pollution could also be used to get rid of invasive plants. A Senate bill to allow this, SB 211, was passed by a committee last week. The Clean Water Indiana Program usually provides matching dollars to help farmers and landowners implement practices like cover cropping and no-till agriculture — to keep the soil from eroding and getting into local waterways.
But those who support the bill say more funding is desperately needed to tackle the problem of invasive plants on private land. Among other things, they can crowd out native plants and reduce species diversity. Ray Chattin is with the State of Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management or SICIM. “It’s not whether we’re going to see a dramatic increase in the number of plant and animal species that will become threatened, endangered, or face extinction — but how many,” he said.
Advocates say invasive plants also threaten Indiana’s hardwood lumber, agriculture and tourism industries. Ray Moistner is the executive director of the Indiana Hardwood Lumbermen’s Association. He said invasive plants like tree of heaven, garlic mustard and multiflora rose can cover the ground and block sunlight from reaching other plants.
“The survival of tree seedlings is a necessary component because today’s seedlings mature to become tomorrow’s viable timber,” Moistner said. The bill doesn’t give additional money to Clean Water Indiana to tackle invasive species — only the authority to use the program’s funds.
It hasn’t taken long for Trump to circumvent laws and log national forests. According to the New York Times, Trump moves to increase logging in National Forests. The president wants to circumvent environmental regulations to expand timber production, something sought by homebuilders and the construction industry. On Saturday, Mr. Trump directed federal agencies to examine ways to bypass endangered species protections and other environmental regulations to ramp up timber production across 280 million acres of national forests and other public lands.
The move appears aimed at increasing domestic supply as the president considers tariffs on timber imports from Canada, Germany, Brazil and elsewhere. Environmental groups say increased logging would decimate American forests, pollute air and water and devastate wildlife habitats. And because trees absorb and store carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, cutting them down releases it back into the atmosphere, adding to global warming.
“Trump’s order will unleash the chain saws and bulldozers on our federal forests,” said Randi Spivak, the public lands policy director for the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group. “Clearcutting these beautiful places will increase fire risk, drive species to extinction, pollute our rivers and streams, and destroy world-class recreation sites,” she said.
Mr. Trump called for the convening of a committee of high-level officials nicknamed the God Squad because it can override the landmark Endangered Species Act so that development or other projects can proceed even if they might result in an extinction. The committee has rarely been convened since it was created, in 1978, through an amendment to the endangered species law to allow for action during emergencies like hurricanes and wildfires.
Mr. Trump also directed the agriculture and interior secretaries, as well as other officials, to look for ways to streamline regulations and reduce costs for timber production and forest management.
In this week’s feature report, Julianna Dailey interviews Mark Nowotarski, an environmental and climate advocate, and other members of the Southwestern Indiana Citizens for Quality of Life organization about Indiana being considered a “sacrifice zone.” What does that mean?
Credits:
On Air…………………………………Julianna Dailey
On Air………………………………..Cybthia Roberts
Headlines………………………………….Norm Holy
Feature Report……………………….Julianna Dailey
Script…………………………………..Julianna Dailey
Events Calendar………………………Julianna Dailey
Engineer……………………………..Branden Blewett
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