|
|
.............................................................................................................
1 2 3 4 5 6 NEXT >> |
One of the most significant steps that the administration has taken to address the backlog is the effort to identify the true extent of the problem through the Facility Condition Index. With the encouragement of the General Accounting Office, the National Park Service has nearly completed the Herculean task of assessing the size of the maintenance backlog—an important component of strategic park management. This process will enable the Park Service to set a benchmark for the preservation of designated facilities in the park system, and then apply a reliable dollar figure to the cost of bringing facilities in line with that benchmark.
NPCA supports this effort and encourages the Park Service to set a high standard for the condition of facilities in its care, from roads and visitor centers to historic buildings, to ensure that these places are in a suitable condition to welcome visitors this summer and in the future.
Although the Facility Condition Index is not yet complete, current estimates place the cost for restoring appropriate national park facilities to the designated condition much lower than prior estimates of the size of the deferred maintenance backlog: perhaps below $3 billion.
This new figure, when formally announced, will be a more accurate assessment of the maintenance backlog in the national parks. The lower cost estimate does not necessarily imply that a large number of deferred maintenance projects has been addressed, but rather, it is an indication that the backlog is being more specifically defined and standardized. The need for increased annual operating funds has not in any way diminished as this funding is essential to stem the growth of the backlog.
Moreover, neither the Facility Condition Index nor the new cost estimate associated with the backlog should allow Congress and the administration to gloss over the critical needs of the parks or overstate accomplishments. Instead, the Index is a new yardstick by which we can measure progress toward improving and maintaining our national parks for future generations.
NEXT >> | 
