Officials at Glacier National Park say protecting wilderness and educating visitors about their impacts on the land are important in preserving the park's future.

95% of Glacier is managed as wilderness and the park has been a protected area for more than 100 years. But officials say aspects of nature that were once taken from granted have become increasingly important.

"Historically when we set asid wilderness areas we thought about large unimpacted tracts of land where natural processes were still at work," said Supervistory Interpreter Matt Graves. "More and more we're learning that things like dark night skys and natural quiet are tngs you can not find around the country because of human development."

He says many people come to Glacier to experience nature as it exists without human interupption, but as more people visit Glacier and its backcountry, they are also bringing with them unwanted aspects of normal human life.

"In particular it's purposely loud vehicles, with aftermarket things on them," said Graves. "We're getting complaints from visitors saying 'We came here for a wilderness experience and we're hearing these sounds. Is there anything you can do about it?'"

Graves says that loud cars traveling through the park and excessively bright lights at campsites can inhibit other visitor's wilderness experiences. He also says close overflights by helicoptors have been a problem.

Wildlife biologists say simple things like lights and sonds can have a real impact on wildlife.

"Lighting facilities at night can interfere with how bats move around and how birds migrate," said Ecologist John Waller. "Our understanding of how things are connected is just in its infancy."

But for now the park says they have no plans for new wilderness rules. Instead they will continue to educate visitors about their impacts on the land.

"People aren't necessarily trying to do bad when they come to a park, but sometimes they don't know the right thing to do," said Backcountry Coordinator Kyle Johnson. "Our goal is to educate people about the resource, and how they can enjoy the resource while preserving it for future generations.