2 T HE A‘U DUB ONY B Usli lL Evista 
A National Park or a Wasteful Dam 
By RAYMOND MOSTEK 
THE DEFENSE OF Dinosaur National Monument and our entire National 
Park System now moves onto the floor of Congress. The House Irrigation 
Subcommittee has voted in favor of including a dam at Echo Park in the 
Upper Colorado River Basin Project. Secretary of the Interior McKay is 
pushing this legislation with all the power at his command. President Eisen- 
hower has not even been informed of the imminent danger to the Park 
System, but his office has approved the entire package. It appears that all 
of our protests to the President are being sidetracked. Our only hope now 
is that sufficient people will make themselves and their friends informed and 
then write their opinion on this legislation to their own Congressman. This 
is an issue on which no one can remain neutral. 
Here is how to answer briefly the spurious contentions of those officials 
and others who are seeking to desecrate our National Park System with a 
dam at Dinosaur: 
1. “The Dinosaur bones are safe.”’ This is not the issue. We are concerned 
with saving the rich and scenic canyons. Echo Park Dam would rise 525 
feet, almost covering Steamboat Rock. 
2. “The beauty of the Monument would not be destroyed.” The reservoir 
would drown more than 10,000 acres of scenic terrain, destroying its vege- 
tation and the life dependent on that vegetation. 
3. “With reservoirs, a greater attraction to more people. ..”’ Dinosaur is 
just being made known. Travel to it is increasing rapidly. With a small ex- 
penditure by Congress, still more thousands will be visiting the park in the 
future. A muddy, fluctuating lake is not to be compared as a scenic attrac- 
tion with rugged canyons. 
4, “The sheer walls preclude roads into most of the scenic areas.” Access 
is easily possible to Castle Park, Echo Park, Gates of Lodore, and Split 
Mountain Gorge. Trails can make more areas available to the general public. 
5. “The dam would not set a precedent because of a Park Service 
promise.” It is becoming increasingly apparent that one can no longer de- 
pend on the Interior Department and especially on Secretary McKay to 
protect our national resources. McKay has refused to fight for adequate 
funds for the National Park Service, has allowed the exploiters to make 
outrageous profits on mineral and mining claims, and by supporting the dam 
invasion at Dinosaur, is failing to defend the National Park Service as the 
law requires. 
6. “The Interior Department proposes to spend $21 million to develop 
recreational potential.” This is fantastic. A fraction of this amount could 
make Dinosaur Monument a first class attraction. The proposed expenditure 
equals 75% of the entire 1955 National Park Service budget. 
If the local interests, hungry for profits, can succeed at Dinosaur, there 
will be a similar line-up at all of our National Parks. 
38345 N. Harding Ave., Chicago 
