Coal company proposes drilling shafts to tap the Colorado River.
GRAND CANYON N.P., ARIZ.- Although national parks seem under assault from a series of threats these days, few park advocates in their wildest dreams would have imagined that an industrial project could be built in the Grand Canyon. Yet it almost happened and still may.
The world's largest coal company, Peabody Energy, has proposed drilling 1,200-foot shafts into the Grand Canyon to suck water from the Colorado River. A $125 million pumping station and pipeline would send water to a nearby mining operation.
Park advocates fiercely decried that plan as one that would pollute the canyon and ruin its wilderness character, among other disastrous outcomes.
"This is just a terrible scheme to rob Grand Canyon National Park of its waters," said Randall Rasmussen, acting regional director of NPCA's Southwest region. "Putting a major industrial facility at the bottom of the canyon and robbing the Colorado River of its flow would be devastating to the park, its wilderness, and the visitor experience."
Peabody needs a new water supply for its mining operations on the Navajo and Hopi reservations in northern Arizona. It needs the new source by 2005 or risks losing millions-if not billions-of dollars by shutting down operations.
A study by HKM Engineering Inc. for the Bureau of Reclamation suggested a pumping station at Grand Canyon as a solution. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) then introduced legislation for Peabody to lease 6,500 acre-feet annually from the Colorado River. He attached the legislation as an amendment to an unrelated bill. The legislation, which never came to a vote, omitted opportunities for environmental review and public comment. Its language was vague, stating that a pipeline would be placed between Lake Mead and Lee's Ferry on the Lower Colorado River. Translation: within Grand Canyon National Park.
Although opposition from conservation groups and the public was intense, it was the concerns of water authorities, namely the Central Arizona Project, which blocked the proposal-for now, at least.
"The proposal could come back. We are bracing for that," said Rasmussen.
A spokeswoman for Peabody said the company has not committed to the pipeline but it is an option under consideration. In the meantime, park advocates are keeping a close eye out for any legislation regarding the leasing of Colorado River water.
The area considered for the pipeline is proposed wilderness. Park advocates fear that Congress would never designate that portion of the canyon as wilderness if the pipeline were approved. An industrial operation could also further imperil endangered species in the river and affect hikers and boaters at the popular Jackass and Marble canyons.
"It's insane to think that the Grand Canyon would be developed to provide water for coal mines that, in turn, fuel the very power plants that pollute the park's air," said Rasmussen. "This cannot be allowed to happen."
