Rotting cabins, closed trails: why we're shining a light on US national parks

Amid dangers from the Trump administration and climate change, sites including the Grand Canyon and Zion national park are facing yet another threat: 'massive disrepair'

• As threat to America's public land increases so does our coverage

At Zion national park, a popular trail has been closed since 2010. At the Grand Canyon, a rusting pipeline that supplies drinking water to the busiest part of the park breaks at least a half-dozen times a year. At Voyageurs, a historic cabin collapsed.

The National Park Service is the protector of some of America's greatest environmental and cultural treasures. Yet a huge funding shortfall means that the strain of America's passion for its parks is showing. Trails are crumbling and buildings are rotting. In all there is an $11bn backlog of maintenance work that repair crews have been unable to perform, a number that has mostly increased every year in the past decade.