Preservation of the Tallgrass Prairie.
The tallgrass prairie ecosystem once covered over 400,000 square miles in North America. This area extended from Canada southward to Texas and from the Rocky Mountains east to present-day Ohio. Today, just one percent of this terrain remains in existence in its natural state, much of which is located in the untamed Flint Hills of eastern Kansas.
There had been a movement for nearly 50 years in favor of some sort of preserve of the minimal resources of this vast prairie that were left. In 1994, the National Park Trust bought a large section (nearly 11,000 acres) of land at the historic Z-Bar/Spring Hill Ranch in Chase County. This rekindled interest for the project, and a bill was introduced in 1996 to both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Sponsored by members of the Kansas congressional delegation, including Senators Nancy Landon Kassebaum and Bob Dole and Representatives Pat Roberts and Ann Meyers, the bill ended up passing through both houses of Congress. The newest United States National Park was born under the name of the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. The park is located 18 miles west of Emporia, or just 2 miles north of Strong City on Highway 177.
Description of Materials by Sources.
The scientific journal, of course, seems to concentrate solely on the environment of the prairie itself. It describes in depth the soil variations and topographic relief of the region of the new park. It presents factual information in almost agonizing detail that can sometimes be difficult to follow. References are used, citing material from authors of other journals, which allows for verification of anything. I have the utmost faith in the author of this piece and his vast array of knowledge about the topography of the tallgrass prairie.
The Popular Science article also discusses the natural environment of the region. It is not about the reserve itself, but rather the Flint Hills region and various agricultural research projects that have been performed there for aid in areas that were once tallgrass prairie, but have since been transformed into farming lands.