The National Park Service is responsible for carefully screening proposals for new park units to assure that only the most outstanding resources are added to the National Park System. Regardless of economic considerations or other factors, a new national park area must meet criteria for national significance, suitability and feasibility. Various other management options are also weighed. For those with proposals for consideration, this page explains the criteria applied by the National Park Service in evaluating new park proposals, outlines the study process, and lists some of the other ways to recognize and protect important resources outside of the National Park System. These questions are frequently asked by people throughout the country.
Some people think a scenic part of their community deserves to be a national park.
Others want national recognition for their favorite historic house or geological formation. The National Park Service has establish criteria for national significance, suitability, feasibility, and management alternatives that help answer these questions. This folder presents the criteria and the study process established in the National Park Service's Management Policies. People with suggestions for new parks can use these criteria as a yardstick to see if their proposals are likely to merit further consideration. Units of the National Park System are managed under mandates differing from those guiding many other federal, state, and local agencies.