Here is the first entry in series about expanding the National Park service, via adding new national ,monuments or reclassifying existing areas as national Monuments. Wherever possible i list the budget for the existing areas, when it was established and now big the current area is. now many sites may be in negotiations to add more land, so the numbers may change. the first areas listed will be existing national monuments- if the state has any. Currently 22 states have no national monuments. After that come national preserves, and then wildlife refuges. after that i will list the areas i would like to add or reclassify to meet the number of monuments specified for each state by total area (land and water). for some states this will include ocean coastline and Great Lakes coastline. The first state I look at will be Alabama.
Here is the first entry in series about expanding the National Park Service, via adding new national monuments or reclassifying existing areas as national Monuments. Wherever possible I list the budget for the existing areas, when it was established and how big the current area is. Now many sites may be in negotiations to add more land, so the numbers may change. The first areas listed will be existing national monuments- if the state has any. Currently 22 states have no national monuments. After that come national forests, then national preserves, and then wildlife refuges. after that I will list the areas I would like to add or reclassify to meet the number of monuments specified for each state by total area (land and water). for some states this will include ocean coastline and Great Lakes coastline. I will also list the length of the state coastline, if applicable.The first state I look at will be Alabama.
ALABAMA
Total Area 52419
Land 50744
Water 1675
Coastline: 53 sq miles
Additional national monuments: 4
currently, Alabama has one existing national monument, 11 wildlife refuges, 4 national forests, and 4 preserves or historic sites
National monuments-1
Russell Cave
Russell Cave covers 310 acres and was established in 1961 by President John F Kennedy. It was previously owned by the National Geographic Society, and was used as a shelter by prehistoric Indians. it has also been found to be home to several rare species of animals including a scorpion that is endemic to the cave.
National Forests-4
William B Bankhead- established 1918 covers 181 224 acres
Bankhead is Alabama's oldest National Forest, and contains the largest wilderness east of the Mississippi, the Sipsey Wilderness which covers nearly 25000 acres.
Talladega- Established 1936 covers 394 617 acres
Talladega is Alabama's Largest national forest. Before it was purchased by the federal government, the area was extremely heavily logged. and was in rough shape. It is divided into two sections, in the central part of the state and in the northern part of the state. the forest is divided into three named districts, the Oakmulgee in the central section and the Talladega and Shoal Creek districts in the northeast. the forest contains two wilderness areas which protect Alabama's two tallest mountains.
Conecuh- established 1936 covers 83852 acres
Conecuh was established alongside Talladega, and like Talladega, was heavily clear-cut before becoming a national forest. Like many of the state and national parks in this country that date from the 30s, the Civilian Conservation Corps is to thank for restoring Conecuh to a healthy state by reforestation. Two lookout towers built by the Corp remain today in the forest and are open to the public.
Tuskegee- established 1959 covers 11252 acres
Tuskegee is the youngest of Alabama's national forests and ranks as the smallest national forest in the country. the forests contains hiking trials and motorized vehicle trials, for atvs and motorbikes.
National Preserves Military Parks and Historic Places-4
Little River Canyon National Preserve_ Established 1992 covers 13633 acres
Little River Canyon is Alabama's only existing national preserve. Preserves are similar to national parks, except they allow mining, hunting and other activities that a park does not, depending on what Congress allowed when the preserve was set up. Little River Canyon is one of the deepest canyons east of the Mississippi at 600 feet.
Horseshoe Bend Military Park- Established 1956 covers 2040 acres
Horseshoe Bend commemorates the last battle of the Creek War in 1814, which saw US forces commanded by Andrew Jackson defeat a force of Upper Creek Red Stick Indians. 800 Upper Creek Indians died in the fighting, the highest loss of Indian lives in a single battle in US history. the defeat led to the signing of the treaty of Fort Jackson which gave the US Government 23 million acres in Georgia and Alabama that had been previously owned by the Upper Creek Indians and their allies.
Tuskagee Institute Historic Site- Established 1966
Includes sites associated with George Washington Carver, including his home and grave site. Carver helped lead Tuskagee University, a historically black college, but is perhaps most famous for inventing 300 different uses for peanuts, including peanut butter.
Tuskagee Airmen Historic Site- Established 1998
this site commemorates the Black airmen who served during World War II. Prior to 1940, blacks were barred from flying, but over the course of the war Tuskagee produced many decorated airmen, and the record of Tuskagee airmen was so stellar that it it paved the way for full integration of the services after the war., including the Air Force. Tuskagee will be shown on the Alabama National Park quarter, which will come out in 2021, and will be the last of 56 sites showcased in the National Park Quarter program.
Wildlife Refuges-11
Bon Secour- Established 1980 covers 6816 acres Budget; 404000
Bon Secour is one of the smaller Wildlife refuges, and is located on the Fort Morgan peninsula near the Gulf Of Mexico. Bon Secour was heavily damaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and was hit again by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Cahaba River Established 2002 Covers 3577 acres
Cahaba River is home to many rare plants and animals, such as the Cahaba Shiner and Cahaba Lilly. The refuge may become drastically bigger in the near future, as plans call for it to cover 280000 acres. the river is managed by the Mountain Longleaf wildlife Refuge.
Choctaw- Established 1964 covers 4218 acres Budgets 882000
This Refuge was created as a habitat for wood ducks and as a migratory stopover for many other species of birds and other animals, such as squirrels. Hunting and fishing are permitted and are popular pastimes in the refuge.
Eufaula- Established 1964 covers 11184 acres (3231 are in Georgia) Budget 718000
Protects endangered species like bald eagles alligators and peregrine falcons. Lies on the Alabama- Georgia boundary, about a third of the refuge is in Georgia.
Fern Cave Established 1981 covers 199 acres
Fern Cave is home to a large population of the endangered gray bat, with estimates ranging from 1 million to 1.5 million. to protect the bats from disturbance the cave itself is closed to the public. Fern Cave is managed by the Wheeler national Wildlife Refuge.
Grand Bay Established 1992 covers 32000 acres
Grand Bay protects the largest remaining expanses of pine savannah in the state. much of the refuge has limited public access, and portions of the refuge lie in Mississippi.
Key Cave Established 1997 covers 1060 acres
This area was previously owned by the Monsanto company, and was heavily polluted by agricultural runoff before Monsanto sold it to the Nature Conservancy, which then sold it to the Fish and Wildlife Service. the two caves in the refuge- Key Cave and Collier cave are closed to the public, for preservation purposes.
Mountain Longleaf Established 2003 covers 9016 acres Budget 250000
This refuge protects some of the last mountain longleaf pine forests left in the South East., as well as rare birds like the red-cockaded woodpecker. Longleaf manages the Cahaba River refuge.
Sauta Cave Established 1978 covers 264 acres
Protects the Indiana and gray bats who live inside the cave. the cave itself is closed to the public. Sauta Cave was once one of the largest saltpeter mines used during the Civil war and artifacts from that area are still preserved in the refuge.
Watercress Darter Established 1980 coves 25 acres
The smallest Wildlife refuge in the state Darter protects the watercress darter , an endangered fish which is endemic to the area.
Wheeler Established 1938 covers 35000 acres Budget 1,694000
Alabama's oldest and to date largest Wildlife refuge, wheeler is locatee in the northern part of the state. It was created alongside the wheeler dam, and provides habitats for thousands of ducks and geese, Wheeler manages Fern,Key and Sauta caves as well as Watercress Darter.
Proposed national monument
Alabama Coastal
this monument will run the length of Alabama's coastline, a length of 53 miles, protecting federal waters out to 20 miles from shore. the monument will extend 10 miles inland, incorporating existing open spaces and protected spaces and surrounding existing wildlife refuges , such as Grand Bay and Bon Secour. estimated total area of the monument is 300000 acres
Little River canyon monument and preserve
this will rename and expand the existing preserve to 20000 acres, providing increased protection, funding and staffing.
Wheeler National monument
Incorporates the largest existing Wildlife refuge, and expands it to 50000 acres.
Cahaba River National Monument
Expands the existing monument to 300000 acres, and increases level of funding, staffing and public interest. national monuments usually receive more funding and visitors than wildlife refuges do.
And there you have it everyone my first state is complete. as always, comments, and feedback are welcome. they allow me to improve on things for future diaries as well as hopefully provide a source of interest for Kos readers.