The government shutdown is nearing its one month mark, and the pains are being felt across the nation, including inside national parks.

Retired national park leaders are fearful of how the bare-boned staffing and steady stream of park visitors might impact the long term well-being of these natural wonders. In response they penned an open letter to the Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum warning him of what’s to come.

“This summer, well before this shutdown, our parks were already being pushed to the brink by funding and staffing cuts,” the letter says, citing that parks had already been “significantly strained” prior to federal workers being furloughed. “The shutdown has made this bad situation far worse.”

Former staffers are demanding Burgum close the parks both for the safety of the

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