It is vitally important that National Park Service employees understand
the purpose for which we manage the parks. That purpose is articulated
in the 1916 Organic Act establishing the National Park Service. The Organic
Act tells us that the purpose is:
"to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects
and the wild life
therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner
and by such
means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."
This web site provides information to help employees better understand how the Service interprets this most important provision of law, and how that interpretation will be applied to NPS decision-making. The Service's baseline interpretation of the Organic Act is found in Section 1.4 of the 2006 Edition of NPS Management Policies. It sets the standard by which the Service will protect park resources and values.
Necessary resources are provided here:
- Section 1.4 ("Park Management"), of NPS Management Policies
- Primer on the "impairment" issue...................................Background for Superintendents
- Service-Wide Strategy for Implementing the No-Impairment Policy
- The Impairment Issue: Questions and Answers
- Treatise by Dr. Robin W. Winks................................The "contradictory mandate" within the Organic Act
- 16 U.S.C. 1-1a-1........................................................The NPS Organic Act
- NLC Journal, April 2001.............................................A discussion of the impairment issue
- Meeting Notes of No-impairment Workgroup, November 2001
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