Copper Mountain Essay -- Environmental Issues

Its a sunny October afternoon and Im listening to the field day gently rustle the tree tops above me. I fashion down into the creek as I sit here munching on some cashews, and I see trout gliding effortlessly through the crystal-clear piddle. I revel in how incredibly lush the bailiwick isalthough its been a dry summer the ground is still moist, plants are bright and colorful, and wildlife is abound. by and by I finish my snack and tuck my trash away into my backpack, I continue my hike up this parcel of land that is may in short become barren with towers of steel and wire draping the landscape. I wonder to myself what entrust become of these fish, or the fresh clean water that runs into the Reeder Reservoir, the source of Ashlands drinking water.According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), go area expansions are the most ecological damaging task that an area tin undertake. In a plan revision for the White River National tone in Colorado, regarding the Copper Mountain Ski Resort expansion, the EPA hammers that point denture when they say that no other land charge prescription on the Forest directly results in more stream-water depletion, wetland impacts, air pollution, permanent plant life change, or permanent habitat loss more wetland impacts and stream depletions resulted from ski area expansion and improvement than from all other Forest management activities combined, including many direct and indirect impacts that are permanent (irreversible and irretrievable). Meanwhile, skier numbers nationwide have only increased just two percent since 1978(source). Which begs the question, wherefore have ski area sizes more than doubled in land area to the tune of 107%(source)? Mt. Ashlands future expansion surely isnt requisite due t... ...ts past development and expansion of the Copper Mountain ski area as major factor in the degradation of the river basin and local water quality. Impacts include increased peak flows, increased water temperature, increased erosion and sediment transport, and decrease flow due to snowmaking activities. The farming has taken exhaustive steps to help mitigate the damage caused by the expansion at a great financial cost to taxpayers. The husbandry has had to redesign all stream crossings to allow for higher stream flows and to retain expected floods. They also performed physical modifications of the stream patterns and stream geometry to improve abundant term stream health. Environmental ScorecardConcerned locals first brought aid to the Environmental Scorecard in November of 2008 after an article published in the local newspaper, Ashland Daily Tidings, appeared.