Next week President Barack Obama is expected to sign legislation that will create a new national park to protect a 77-foot high waterfall in New Jersey and 35 acres of historical sites around it. This will be the first national park Obama will designate during his presidency.
The “Great Falls” waterfall was featured in a philosophical poem by William Carlos Williams. Beyond its intrinsic beauty, the waterfall and the surrounding community of Paterson, New Jersey are rich in history as one of the key starting locations for America’s Industrial Revolution.
However, the designation has been criticized as not having national significance and that the money used to create and maintain a new national park could be better spent elsewhere. No doubt the Paterson community will see an increase in tourism. But will such a small park diminish the national park brand?
The Bush administration thought so and had previously declined protected status for Great Falls. The Washington Times notes that “a 2006 National Park Service study said the site is neither suitable nor feasible, the park system already includes enough waterfalls and similar cultural sites, and Paterson is already well-protected by the state. The study noted that Niagara Falls has never been designated a national park because it is protected by New York.”
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