Flooding after heavy rains along Delicate Arch Road, Arches National Park / NPS file
Arches National Park invites the public to comment on a Floodplain Statement of Findings (FSOF) related to the proposed construction of bridges over three low-water crossings on the Delicate Arch Road.
The proposed bridges would replace undersized culverts that routinely fill with sediment during monsoon rain events, causing water to back up and cover the roadway, impeding visitor access to this extremely popular part of the park.
Per the proposed action, 100-foot-long slab bridges rising 6 to 8 feet above the roadway will be built at Salt Wash, Winter Camp Wash, and Salt Valley Wash. During construction, Delicate Arch Viewpoint will be closed but visitors will still be able to access Wolfe Ranch and the popular Delicate Arch Trail.
The public is invited to review the FSOF and provide comments at https://parkplanning.nps.gov/projectHome.cfm?projectID=119140 from now through September 17, 2024.
Comments
No. Flooding occurred when the culverts under a road are not lathe enough to handle water flow in high flow years. Smaller culverts are usually used to save money or lessen "environmental" impac. New bridged roads are both more expensive and have a higher environmental impact than simply placing larger culvert. How about you put in culverts that are large enough to handle water flow in high flow years. Honestly this should have been done in the first place reguardless of the environmental impact at the time as it would have saved money and the environment in the long run. Putting properly sized culverts into place can be done quickly & with minimal impact to the environment and to visitors.
Bridges will detrac from natural environment and make it "urbanised" in which case what is the point of calling it a "natural" national park. Bridges will remove visitors from the environment they are trying to experience. Bridges will cause more impact on the environment and detract from the natural beauty of the environment. Bridges will take years and years and years to complete.
No bridges. Simply put in proper sizes culverts.
read 'desert solitaire' by ed abbey
Ed Abbey: Enjoy his writing, but jeez, what a terrible human being.