This week on “The Climate Divide,” we explore the National Park Service’s management of the District’s parks
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(photo courtesy of GPA Photo Archive / Ward 8 Woods / Facebook)
This week’s episode of “The Climate Divide” features an interview with Rachel Clark, the Policy Director at the George Washington University’s Sumner M. Redstone Global Center for Prevention and Wellness. The episode also includes an interview with Kim Patterson, the Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner for ANC 4A05 in Brightwood.
The District finds itself in a unique circumstance, given that the National Park Service controls nearly 90 percent of its parkland. These park spaces include the National Mall, Anacostia Park, Rock Creek Park and smaller pocket parks sprinkled throughout the city.
According to a study published last year by the Redstone Global Center, the Park Service is ill-equipped to manage urban parks due to how it operates and funding issues. The agency’s deferred maintenance costs exceed $1.5 billion in D.C. alone.
The Redstone report found a disparity in funding across District parks in the Park Service’s portfolio, with parks on the eastern side of the city receiving far less funding per acre than the National Mall and monuments downtown.
“It illustrates how the parks serving D.C. residents and neighborhoods are underserved by the current system,” says Clark.
The second part of the episode will cover recent developments with the rehabilitation of the Rock Creek Park Golf Course, which the nonprofit National Links Trust currently operates under a lease agreement with the Park Service.
The proposal’s removal of more than 1,000 trees was featured heavily in testimonies during a public meeting convened by the National Capital Planning Commission earlier this month.
In an interview, Commissioner Patterson speaks with host Marcelo Jauregui-Volpe about how Brightwood residents engage with the golf course, her concerns about the tree removal and the need for more community engagement from the Park Service.
“I really think a meeting is called for,” says Patterson, “to have the Park Service present and have the public be able to ask questions.”
About “The Climate Divide”
In this third season of “The Climate Divide,” we’ll cover solutions that foster sustainability and resilience in the District. Since environmental burdens aren’t felt the same, many people are working to ensure that the climate transition is equitable and that vulnerable residents have a healthy future and the resources to face natural disasters. Season three will examine how numerous grassroots initiatives, city government programs and federal grants will impact residents.
“The Climate Divide” is hosted, produced and edited by Marcelo Jauregui-Volpe. Claudia Peralta Torres provides additional editing and sound mixing support. Christine MacDonald is the series editor and executive director of Hola Cultura. Members of the Society and Culture team, part of Hola Cultura’s Storytelling Program for Experiential Learning, also contribute to this podcast. “The Climate Divide” is supported by Spotlight DC and the Pulitzer Center.
– Story by Marcelo Jauregui-Volpe
– Copy edited by Michelle Benitez
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