What are the challenges to the National Park Service mission faced by Yosemite National Park?
Soon after Yosemite Valley was first encountered by non-Indians in 1851, tourists started coming to see the Valley’s “scenic wonders.” There were 147 visitors in 1864, 623 in 1868, 1,735 in 1870, and over 4,000 in 1886. Visitation has continued to climb, and by the late 1990s, nearly four million people (and their cars) visited Yosemite each year. To meet the needs of the increasing visitation, development also increased in the park over the years. By 1980, it was recognized that Yosemite Valley had become congested with more than a thousand buildings, that the Valley floor was bisected by approximately 30 miles of roads, and that the Yosemite Valley experience of many visitors had become one of crowds and traffic jams. What is a general management plan? General management plans are long-range plans for specific national park areas. Along with related analytical studies and amendments, they are the tools that the National Park Service uses to guide management of various park units. The
