Protecting 11 miles (18 km) of shoreline on Lake Michigan, Newport is Wisconsin's only wilderness-designated state park.

In 1946, the State Planning Board and the Wisconsin Conservation Department recommended the area as a place to develop a park.

[5] The only public air pollution monitor in the county is located in Newport State Park.

Because the station is near the shore, only the red lines (which show the lower air currents) meaningfully depict the path of ozone to the monitor.

The climate of the park is modified considerably by its close proximity to Lake Michigan and Green Bay.

This is reflected in the fewer number of days with extremely high or low temperatures than are common for that latitude.