By Paul Bean
Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) raised concerns over the management of national parks April 28 in a video from the Grand Canyon, criticizing Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) April 21 ‘takeover’ of the National Park Service.
“This is your Grand Canyon,” said Senator Peter Welch in a video posted to social media of him standing in front of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. “This belongs to the American people. Thank you Teddy Roosevelt for getting the National Park Service going.”
The caption reads, “National parks like the Grand Canyon should belong to the American people, not Elon Musk.”
“And Elon Musk, keep your DOGE hands off of the Park Service. The things you’re doing are going to damage us and it’s going to mean future generations don’t have the opportunity to enjoy the spectacular part of America that all of us now can.”
DOGE has recently taken significant control over the Department of the Interior (DOI), which includes the National Park Service (NPS). On April 17, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum (a friend of Gov. Phil Scott) authorized the DOI to give DOGE’s assistant secretary of policy management and budget, Tyler Hassen, access to their data and information on 400 national parks, 500 million acres of public land, and various administrative functions like financial management, human resources, and more.
“With this unusual move, Burgum appears to be going further than most other Cabinet members in granting power to a DOGE representative who has not gone through a Senate confirmation process,” wrote the Washington Post April 21. “Hassen’s decisions could have major implications for how [the] Interior — which is responsible for maintaining national parks, protecting endangered species, and overseeing drilling in public lands and waters — operates going forward.”
Critics have argued that DOGE lacks the expertise to manage such resources and that the delegation might not even be legal since DOGE isn’t a Congressionally established department.
Vermont does not have a traditional “national park” under the National Park Service, like the Grand Canyon or Yosemite. However, it does have federally protected areas that are influenced by federal policies.
Vice President JD Vance’s visit to Vermont in February sparked concerns over Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest, managed by the U.S. Forest Service (also under the Department of the Interior), and a significant federally managed area in Vermont. A snow report from Sugarbush Ski Resort’s official channels took an unexpected turn during the VP’s visit when snow reporter Lucy Welch (no relation to Sen. Welch) used her daily update to issue a passionate critique of the current presidential administration during the visit of Vice-President J.D. Vance and his family.
“This fresh forest air is, more specifically, fresh National Forest air,” snow reporter Welch wrote. “Right now, National Forest lands and National Parks are under direct attack by the current Administration, who is swiftly terminating the positions of dedicated employees who devote their lives to protecting the land we love.”
She also highlighted concerns about climate change, referencing Vermont’s rapid warming and potential threats to the ski industry. She criticized cuts to NOAA, the agency responsible for tracking extreme weather, and voiced solidarity with marginalized groups within the Sugarbush community, including LGBTQ+ individuals, people of color, and international workers on J-1 visas.
Lucy Welch’s concerns are not unfounded. Sugarbush is on GMNF land, as well as some of Vermont’s beloved Long Trail, America’s oldest long-distance hiking trail, which stretches 273 miles across Vermont. The Green Mountain Club is a non-profit organization founded in 1910 to maintain and protect the Long Trail. The Green Mountain Club also collaborates with federal and state agencies, including the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service, to manage trails like the Appalachian Trail, which overlaps with the Long Trail in southern Vermont.
A High Country News article reported Feb 28 that DOGE had terminated approximately 2,000 probationary workers in the U.S. Forest Service nationwide, halting projects on wildfire prevention, environmental restoration, and trail repair.
If the Green Mountain National Forest lost workers as part of the 2,000 terminations, it could face challenges in maintaining trails (such as the Long Trail) and managing environmental risks. Vermont’s forests are increasingly vulnerable to climate-related risks like flooding and wildfires, and reduced staffing could exacerbate these issues.
As of today it is unclear whether Vermont’s Parks and Forests have directly felt the impact of DOGE, however it is fair to speculate that cuts are possible.