Westarctican Parks Service
The Westarctican Parks Service (sometimes abbreviated to WPS) is an agency within the Government of Westarctica that was formally authorized on 6 October 2023. Although there is work being done behind the scenes to get the service up and running, no Director has been named, with no official activity taking place as of yet.
Creation of the Westarctican Parks Service
An administrative agency for a national park system in Westarctica had been discussed as a goal as early as 2018, when some informal conceptualizing took place between the Ministers of Conservation and Citizenship & Immigration. It was brought up a handful of times over the next few years, always being well-recieved, but never being taken up as an earnest endeavor until the Summer of 2023, when a bill was introduced before the Senate by then Senator Jordan Farmer. It was passed and signed into law on 6 October of that year.
Despite there being no public-facing movement since then, a great deal of work has been taking place to identify, research, evaluate, and categorize potential sites for protection under the WPS. A finalized list of locations, justifications, and boundaries for the first five sites for protection was provided to Grand Duke Travis in March of 2025.
Areas Protected by the WPS
Sites protected by the Parks Service fall into three categories: National Parks, National Monuments, and Conservation Zones.
National Parks
National Parks are to be considered the "crown jewels" of Westarctican conservation and receive the highest level of inherent protections and preservation. Special consideration is to be taken to balance conservation concerns with the potential impacts of ecotourism that accompanies national parks worldwide. National parks can only be created via legislation. When created by "upgrading" an existing monument or conservation zone, a veto by the Sovereign can be overridden. When legislation attempts to create a new protected site or reworks the boundaries of existing sites within the WPS, a potential Sovereign veto cannot be overridden.
As of 24 March 2025, Westarctica has not yet created any National Parks.
National Monuments
National Monuments are sites that warrant protections, though with fewer conservation concerns than those of a national park. This can be due to lower levels of ecotourism, having a less fragile ecological or scientific significance, or the preservation primarily for historical reasons. A monument can be declared via decree by the Sovereign or via legislative process (which cannot override Sovereign veto).
As of 24 March 2025, Westarctica has not yet created any National Monuments.
Conservation Zones
Conservation Zones carry the lowest inherent protections under Westarctican Law, but can be tightened to be significantly higher than that of even a national park on a case-by-case basis. These sites also have the lowest public access interest. A conservation zone can be declared via decree by the Sovereign or via legislative process (which cannot override Sovereign veto).
As of 24 March 2025, Westarctica has not yet created any Conservation Zones.