Does Florida Need A New National Park?

Does Florida Need A New National Park?

From Wait Five Minutes by waitfiveminutes

May 4, 2026 · 31 min · Episode 311

About this episode

The episode discusses the proposal to convert Ocala National Forest into a new National Park in Florida and features a conversation with Ryan Smart from the Florida Springs Council who opposes the idea.

Florida has three National Parks, and eleven total NPS locations. One of which is the famous Ocala National Forest. This week, we chat with Ryan Smart of the Florida Springs Council about a plan to convert the Ocala Forest into a brand new National Park in our state, and why Ryan thinks that's a bad idea. Read the story that inspired this episode on The Alligator Vote for us as Best Local Podcast at Orlando Weekly! Read more of my writing with the Community Paper right here! Thank you to Chelsea Rice for her incredible design of our logo! Follow Chelsea on Instagram here! All of the music was originally composed.

People in this episode

Guest: Ryan Smart

Topics covered

  • National Parks
  • Florida
  • Environmental Policy
  • Conservation
  • Public Opinion

Keywords

  • Florida
  • National Park
  • Ocala National Forest
  • Ryan Smart
  • Florida Springs Council
  • conservation
  • environmental policy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Florida Springs Council, The Alligator, Orlando Weekly, Community Paper

Places: Florida, Ocala National Forest

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