Zion National Park By: Jonathan Cloutier

Relief Map Relief Map of Zion National Park (Landforms and features such as canyons and rivers are identified)

Country Map Map of Zion National Park located in the USA Zion

Why Zion Became A National Park Zion became a national park in 1919 and it was Utah's first National Park. Zion became a National park to protect 3 separate ecosystems which include more than 900 species of plants not found anywhere else in Utah. It was also a National Park because it was a beautiful area of land for tourists to visit. Soon after the state of Utah began paving a state highway which was followed by a railroad. By the summer of 1917 touring cars could finally bring visitors to Zion Canyon.

Environmental issues affecting Zion A few environmental issues affecting Zion are: Automobile congestion: 4,000 to 5,000 vehicles enter the park yet there are only 400 parking spaces. noise pollution: noise from automobiles is bouncing off the canyon walls to disrupt tranquility. damage to vegetation near the roads: from cars cyclists and pedestrians. human littering and waste: Pedestrians walking the trails constantly leave trash along the paths.

Special landforms and Features in Zion In Zion there are many amazing landforms and land features. That includes ancient paths that native people and pioneers walked a long time ago. There is also massive sandstone cliffs that could amaze you for hours, accompanied by really beautiful canyons. In Zion there is also an unbelievable amount of plants and animals.

How Tech is Used in Zion There are many forms of technology in Zion. For example, they have clean running propane buses to shuttle visitors and reduce automobile traffic, noise and pollution to other visitors. Their visitor center is a energy efficient building that protects the environment. They also created the Green Fleet Bicycle Project to encourage using bicycles for short trips to reduce vehicle emissions.

Types of Rock in Zion In Zion there are multiple kinds of rocks. The most common is sandstone and usually appears around cliffs. Sandstone is a primary sedimentary rock. Another very common rock is limestone and it is also usually found near or at cliffs. Limestone is also a sedimentary rock. Siltstone is also found mostly found in cliffs and slopes. It is also a sedimentary rock. There are volcanoes in the Kolob volcanic field but I could not find any info on Igneous rock in Zion.

Formation of Zion Zion is more than 250,000,000 years old, and it was formed in a very interesting way. A long time ago all of Zion was covered in a low body of water. Then huge rivers carved their way through the terrain. Later through the process it turned into one of the largest deserts on Earth. The 2,000 foot cliffs are now all that is left of those massive sand dunes. Now the park includes canyons, plateaus, rivers, and waterfalls.

How is Zion Changing Zion is changing in a few ways. One way is that the streams rapidly fall of the plateau into the rock. Those streams carry sediment and large rocks that form deep and narrow canyons. At one time, a landslide created a dam in the Virgin River to form a lake. At some point the lake drained to form a valley. In 1995 a land slide damaged the road in the valley. Since then there have been multiple flash floods that have increased the volume in the Virgin River, damaging the scenic road and valley.

Bibliography "Zion National Park." - New World Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. "World Easy Guides." N.p., n.d. Web. "Geology." Zion National Park Geology Comments. Zion National Park, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Seek, Ryan. "Road to Zion." Fine Art America. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. "Where to Next?" Where to Next. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Friedman, Bruce. "Massive Sandstone Cliffs Of Zion - Zion National Park - Utah by Bruce Friedman." Fine Art America. Fine Art America, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.