At a time when the parks system has seen severe budget and staff cuts, the amount of volunteer hours at Washington's state parks has dropped sharply over the past few years.

The Everett Herald reports (http://bit.ly/LInTEu) that volunteer hours in 2011 were 40,186 fewer than in 2010 and 66,453 fewer when compared to 2009.

State parks officials blame the drop on the troubled economy and mandated background checks for volunteers, not dissatisfaction with the facilities or disaffection with the Discovery Pass entrance fee program.

They also say that budget cuts are partly to blame for the drop as those directly involved in coordinating volunteer outreach efforts lost their jobs or were assigned other tasks.