This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
We have visited Arches and Canyonlands National Parks for many years, most recently over Thanksgiving week. Arches has many signs explaining about biological soil crust and why visitors should avoid stepping on this critical desert life form.
There are no such signs in Canyonlands, and this has been the case for years. A few years ago I wrote to the superintendent of Canyonlands asking why the signs from years ago had been removed and not replaced. I did not receive a response.
So maybe it is time for the residents of Utah who are most impacted by dust storms to ask why the superintendent of a national park is averse to educating visitors.
Naomi Rachel, Ph.D.
Boulder, Colo.