National parks - how do they help the environment?

Hello

National parks are a place of immense beauty. They are know as tourist attractions and are best recognised by their incredible landscapes. Today we are talking about their effects on the natural world!

Yosemite National Park, United States

National parks are normally created and protected by governments. In most cases, they have public access, meaning that visitors can walk around in them and admire them. The IUCN defines what is a national park and what isn't. In 2006, over 6 500 areas met the criteria and are defined as a national park. However, there are many areas called National Park, that aren't a national park according to IUCN and there are places that the IUCN defines as a national park but the government doesn't. So some countries have their own definitions. In the UK and some other countries, a national park referes to an undeveloped, scenic, tourist attracting area that has some planning restrictions. This may seem quite subjective, because there isn't really a scientific definition for scenic. So the term, national park is not very firm or well defined. Terms such as "preserve", "reserve" and sometimes just "park" are also used.

Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, Japan

The world's oldest national parks include Yellowstone National Park (United States), Tobago Main Ridge Forest Reserve (Trinidad and Tobago) and Bogd Khan Uul Mountain (Mongolia). Following the IUCN definition, the smallest national park is the Isles des Madeleines National Park (0.45 squ.km) and the largest national park is the Northeast Greenland National Park (972 000 squ. km).

Torres del Paine National Park, Chile

National parks have many benefits for humans. They bring in massive numbers of tourists, which is highly beneficial for the economy. In the US in 2019, the national parks brought in 41.7 billion dollars for the US economy. They also produce hundreds of thousands of jobs and boost the economy on a local level as well as nationally. Having an accessible green space is also known to have amzing health benefits especially for people living in crowded cities and large towns. They are also a research opportunity for scientists and have a great educational value for pupils and students.

Cairngorms National Park, Scotland

Above all else, national parks are amazing for the environment. They protect ecosystems, help critically endangered species to recover, protect and improve air quality, host biodiversity, often store carbon, protect natural ressources, stabilise soil, reduce flooding, protect coastlines and sometimes even generate renewable energy. One of the most well known projects, is when wolves were reintroducted into Yellowstone National Park (United States) in 1995. The wolves tranformed the entire ecosystem and even changed the course of the rivers. Watch the video here.

Yellowstone National Park, United States

However there is some critism at national parks. This mainly comes from the fact, that when many national park were created, the indigenous people living there were forced to move. This has led many people to say that certain national parks are a symbol of colonialism and should be returned to their previous owners (the indigenous people). Many governments and organisations are organising for the indigenous people to be allowed to live in their ancestrial lands and are often encouraged to continue with their traditions. Now they are often included in the tourism sector and many indigenous people in national parks work as guides or performers and help with the conservation of the land.

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Austrailia

We hope you enjoyed this post and found it interesting. If you want us to talk about one park in more detail then let us know in the comments or send us an email at contact.greenworld@gmail.com

Your Green World Blog Team💚

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_park
https://www.treehugger.com/why-are-national-parks-important-5184042
https://interestingengineering.com/culture/how-do-national-parks-help-the-environment
https://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/how-wolves-change-rivers/

Images:
Yosemite National Park: This image, owned by - Adam Reeder - (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.
Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park: This image, owned by SteFou! (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Torres del Paine National Park: This image, owned by Harshil Shah (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Cairngorms National Park: This image, owned by Ben Palmer (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Yellowstone National Park: This image, owned by josephmccowie (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park: This image, owned by scott1346 (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Comments

Ecosia

We all need to do something to save our planet: it is no use just leaving it to Greta Thunberg! She is very inspirational, yes, but she can only do so much. She isn't superhuman! The climate crisis is up to us; up to you. We all have to get stuck in. Research, learn, discover and most importantly: never give up! The world's animals need us. The world's trees need us and a simple way to do this is to switch to Ecosia. Ecosia is a search engine but it plants trees while you search the web. Okay, it doesn't have as many websites as google so you may want to have google as a backup but it plants trees: this is your opportunity to make a simple change. Just google Ecosia and search to plant trees. Make a difference. Image: This image is owned by Binyamin Mellish on pexels.com .

16.08.2020 Animal of the week: Elephant

Hello. On the 12th of August it was International Elephant Day, so we decided that this week's post should be about elephants. Elephants are the largest living land mammals. There are three types of elephant; the African bush elephant; the African forest elephant and the Asian elephant. African elephants have larger ears, whereas Asian elephants have smaller ears. Elephants use their trunks to breath, bring food and drink to their mouths and to grasp objects. Elephants' legs are like pillars. They carry the Elephant's massive weight. African bush elephants weigh 6000kg, Asian elephants weigh 4000kg and African forest elephants weigh 2700kg. Basically, they are very heavy.Elephants eat grasses, small plants, bushes, fruit, twigs, tree bark, and roots. Elephants can live up to 70 years old in the wild. They communicate by sight, touch and smell. Sadly, these wonderful mammals are in danger. African elephants are listed as vulne...

Pollination

Hello everyone, Today we're talking about pollination and its importance in the world's ecosystems. First a bit of basic plant biology. To reproduce most plants do have a differentiation into male and female, but not in the same way that we see in mammals. Both male and female reproductive organs can be found on the same plant, although not in the same place. Male gametes are produced in the stamens and are then found in pollen. On the other hand, female reproductive organs are called pistils and egg cells are found in the ovule (normally in the flower heads). Pollination describes the process of transporting the pollen to the egg cells, making it an essential part of the reproduction of plants. Nearly all seed plants worldwide require pollination to reproduce. Cone bearing trees also need pollination. Pollination is almost always assisted by other organisms such as insects, birds and mammals to transport the pollen. In some species wind ...

October Top tips | homemade presents

Hi everyone, So today we're going to talk about sustainable homemade presents. If you start now, then some of these would make amazing Christmas presents. 1. Knitting, crochet, embroidery & more yarn items You can make some incredible presents by knitting or crocheting with wool or thick yarn. All you need are needles and wool/yarn. Wool can be expensive if you want good quality so check out this post about making your own yarn out a t-shirt! With thinner yarn you could make some amazing thing through embroidery. Here are some project ideas: Scarfs Socks Blankets Jumpers Pouch Dishcloths Table mat Headband Fingerless gloves Keychains Friendship bracelets Wall decorations Handles for hot pots and pans Figurines Bag designs 2. Origami Origami is an amazing way to show someone that you put time into what you made. You can use paper of any size, colour or pattern. Here are some ideas: Swans ...

September Top Tips | recycling

Hi everyone, Today we are going to be talking about recycling. Recycling is quite big thing in the media, with some critics saying that it doesn't help. But I would say that even though it isn't going to save the world, it will make a small difference and probably save you some money! So here are some recycling ideas (although depending on your personal situation it might be up cycling or down cycling): An old t-shirt turned into an apron An old t-shirt turned into a cushion Tin cans turned into plant pots Tin cans turned into pencil holders Plastic bottles or clear plastic tubes turned into bird feeders An old handbag turned into a picnic basket Lotion, shampoo and conditions bottles turned into storage A shoebox turned into a make up organiser Old t-shirts turned into a baby blanket Plastic spoons turned into mirror decorations Bike parts into a lamp shade An old piano turned ...

Overfishing- An Introduction

When writing the article on the Yangtze Finless Porpoise, I briefly touched on the topic of overfishing. Many of you have probably heard about it, and know it is a massive problem threatening our seas and their inhabitants. Overfishing is so destructive, it can kill all life in the ocean, and many of you might be part of it every day. So I read through many articles from international organisations, and they all say pretty much the same things. It's a highly complex topic, with so many things to say and do, so this is just an introduction to the broadest points. It's very interesting (and sad) but when you look into it further you realize there is actually a lot you can do! This is very important, especially for ocean lovers and seafood people. What is overfishing? By definition, overfishing is so intense fishing, people catch fish quicker than the stocks can reproduce. Leading to a massive decrease in stocks that can peak in the extinction of a s...

10 Animals on the Edge of Extinction No. 10- The Javan Rhino

The Javan rhino is listed as the 1st animal on WWF’s list of the 10 world’s most endangered animals, and I for my part, had never heard of it! If you hadn’t either, we’re changing that now. A bit about the rhino’s lifestyle The Javan rhinos are now exclusively found on the island of Java in Indonesia, but were once found in vast regions of northeast india and Southeast Asia. They have a dark grey colour which looks almost black when wet, and their (often pink) skin folds look a bit like plated armor. Both males and females have lower incisors which resemble tusks that they use to fight. Males have one relatively short horn of about 25 cm (10 inches). Javan Rhinos live in tropical forests, marshy areas and in the thick bush. They are mainly browsers and eat over 100 plants species they find in the forest, weigh between 900 and 2300 kg (1984-5071 pounds) and are between 3 and 3.2 meters (10- 10.5 feet) long. How endangered are we talking? Javan rhinos are the most ...

10 animals on the edge of extinction you didn't know about no.4 - Sumatran elephant

Hello everyone, This is the 4th post in our '10 animals on the edge of extinction you didn't know about'. Today we are going to be talking about Sumatran elephants. You've probably all heard about Sumatran tigers, which are also on the edge of extinction, but Sumatran elephants are much less well-known. Characteristics Sumatran elephants live for around 70 years and grow 2 - 3.2m tall. They weigh 2 000 to 4 000 kg and are the smallest subspecies of Asian Elephant. The males have tusks, however, these don't grow as long as their African counterparts. The females also have tusks but these are normally so small, that they are hidden under the upper lip. Sumatran elephants are herbivores, eating bark, bananas, young fresh leaves and occasionally various wild herbs. Social lives Elephants are very social and live in herds of 20 - 35 individuals. These herds are led by a dominant female. Males leave when reach adolescence, either willi...

Photo Essay | dolphin spotting boat ride

Hi Everyone! Quite a while ago now, me and my family went on a dolphin spotting boat ride, and I've been meaning to share some photos for ages now! We saw so many dolphins very close up and we managed to get some good shots, although it can never be as magical as in person! All photos in this post were taken by me or my family. They were so close to the boat! This photo is stunning! It's under the water! Again - under the water! It was so hard to capture them jumping! This was the boat.... ...

Linking climate change and inequality - 'The Great Carbon Divide'

Hey everyone, Have you heard of 'The great carbon divide‘? It is often referred to as the 'carbon footprint gap' or the 'emissions imbalance‘, and produces frightening numbers. The great carbon divide describes the huge gap between the amount of carbon dioxide the rich versus the poor emit, and these numbers shocked even us. What does this mean? There have been many different studies, and all of them show terrifying results. One study from the Guardian and Oxfam, reports that the richest 1% of the world's population emit more carbon than the poorest 66%. The richest 1% consist of 77 million people, which may seem like a lot at first, but the poorest 66% refers to over 5 billion people! Africa, which is home to 17% of the world's population, only causes 4% of the world's emissions. This top 1% emitted 16% of global CO2 emissions in 2019, that's 5.9 billion tonnes of CO2. Modelling suggests that it would take someone who isn't in the top 1% about 150...

Green World

Search This Blog