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Article: Power and the glory: should we trade the Grand Canyon's wonder for cheap electricity? (Science & Society)
- Article from:
- U.S. News & World Report
- Article date:
- January 21, 1991
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1991 All rights reserved. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Should we trade the Grand Canyon's wonder for cheap electricity?
It took the Colorado River between 5 and 6 million years to carve Out the 277 miles of the Grand Canyon. It has taken humans a mere two decades to start undoing some of nature's finest handiwork. To the 4 million tourists who visit the national park annually to gaze down from the rim at the red-rock fantasia, the chasm appears as indestructible and immutable as it is magnificent. Only from deep within is the physical damage evident. The river's few fragile beaches, vital to both the canyon's ecosystem and its tourism, are disappearing.
The beaches are habitat for vegetation like ...