WHAT WE DO

   Initially designated a national monument in 1909, Olympic was reclassified as a national park in 1938. Today, the park protects nearly one million acres of mountainous landscapes, old growth trees, temperate rainforest, 3,000 miles of wild salmon streams, and unspoiled beaches that span 62 miles of wild coastline-the largest outside of Alaska. Visitors exploring the coastline at low tide may find petroglyphs that were carved into seaside rocks 300 to 500 years ago by American Indians. Mount Olympus and other surrounding peaks are home to a variety of wildlife, including 13 animal and plant species that are found nowhere else in the world.

   Olympic National Park needs an additional $6 million annually to protect resources and provide adequate visitor education. While the appropriated base budget has in fact grown modestly over the past 20 years, it has not kept pace with unfunded costs and increasing responsibilities resulting from growing visitation. Each year, as visitation increases and funding loses ground, visitors are less and less likely to interact with park staff and protection of Olympic's resources declines.

   Because of a shortage of protection rangers, poaching poses a threat to the park's diverse and endangered animals such as bear, elk, and fish. Additional staff is needed to document and preserve the park's collection of hundreds of thousands of cultural artifacts, including historic stone points.

   This summer, Olympic National Park is making drastic cuts to visitor services and resource protection activities because of insufficient funding and staff.

   The Forks Park and Forest Visitor Information Station, which attracts approximately 17,000 visitors annually, will be closed all year. For the first time in the park's history, operating hours at the park's other visitor centers have been reduced and public education programs have been cut to ensure that the remaining centers can be staffed all summer. Few, if any, of the park's 13 seasonal interpretative rangers will hired back this summer - resulting in a 65 percent reduction in program outreach and a 25 percent reduction in the number of visitor center contacts. Additionally, as many as 25 resource protection and maintenance seasonal staff may not be hired this summer.