National Park is an area that contains natural resource of ecological importance or unique beauty such as beautiful scenery, waterfall, caves, and mountains, or flora and fauna of special importance.
National Parks of Thailand offer the visitors tremendous variety of attractions, in addition, they consists of ecologically, economically and scientifically valuable plants and animals. Most of Thailand National Parks are blessed with natural beauty and historical importance. The geology, landscape and natural beauty of the parks was recognized by visitor, both locally and internationally. Their appearances are self-interpretive.
National Parks, in the sense of protected areas, play significant roles in maintaining ecological stability and preserving biological diversity. These protected areas also are excellent places for recreation and education. Up to now, The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation has established 126 national parks .
According to the necessity and importance of conservation of biological and ecological diversity of nature and resource, pushed the Royal Forest Department to establish many national parks covering every part of country, from the highest peak of mountain in the Doi Inthanon National Park to the lowest area of river and sea such as Krabi National Park continuously covering sea coast and mid-sea of the Mu Ko Surin National Park.
Regarding the diversity of species and genetics, actually the Thai academic knowledge of plant and animal species is very limited and consequently sometime is the cause of pitfall of nature and resource management. However, the conservation of natural habitats of these species and genetics in the national park boundaries throughout the country could make a confidence to our children that some varieties of wild species would be conserved at some degree. In addition, some academic research promotion is parallelly proceeded and hoped that one day Thailand would be ready and able to efficiently use this nature and biological resources diversity.
Another valued nature and resource of Thai national parks is the natural-born things which are very unique in the world or so called the natural and resource uniqueness of geological form, for example the 75 million years of shell cemetery of the Hat Noppharat Thara - Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, the James Bond Island of the Ao Phang-nga National Park, the exotic stalactite cave of the Chaloem Rattanakosin National Park, Hin Ngam beach of Tarutao National Park, the button rock terrace and cracked rock terrace of Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park, the cliff rock of Lom Sak Cliff and the right place of the 3-leaf pine tree on the cliff of Phu Kradueng National Park.
These prominent of nature and resources, if be destroyed, we could not recreate them by a big money at all and also our proudest possession of these nature and resources would be gone forever. The other side of these valued nature and resources which we don't have too much in the Thai national parks are the natural and resource culture of original communities. For example Chao Le of Surin Islands National Park, Tarutao National Park and Mu Ko Lanta National Park, Sa Kai Wild Negrito of Thaleban National Park , or the mountain tribe community which the traditional of living style and culture of these communities would gradually dilute, so the left communities are the uncomparable valued thing that we must conserve.
And the last thing is the historical nature and resources which exists here since the age of prior historical record, such as color paint picture at Pha Taem National Park or evidence and dinosaur fossil at Phu Wiang National Park or even some historical evidence which is very important for our nation appearing on many national parks, for example Khuha Kharuehat Throne at Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park, Phra Nang Ruea Lom at Namtok Phlio National Park and the political jail at Tarutao National Park. Therefore, these nature and resources conserving for our children in Thai national parks are very difficult for us to evaluate them as a value of money.