Popular National Park Faces Water Crisis That Could Derail Your Next Adventure

Arches National Park is a mecca for adventure seekers — a place where hikers, climbers, and road-trippers chase wild horizons under a blazing desert sun. But behind the stunning red rock vistas and slickrock trails, the park’s aging infrastructure is fighting a battle it’s dangerously close to losing, placing its potable water supply at risk.

Every refill of a water bottle, every splash of cold water across a redish-brown dusty face, comes courtesy of a water system built decades ago when annual visitation was less than half of today’s 1.8 million. Now, that system is crumbling under the weight of record crowds, rising contamination levels, and years of deferred maintenance by a stretched-thin staff. That's according to a statement given by the Arches and Canyonlands National Parks’ spokesperson, Karen Henker, to SFGATE.

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“The levels of certain contaminants in Arches’ potable water, such as nitrates, are still within acceptable limits, but are at risk of increasing beyond what is safe," Henker added. Additionally, the park’s septic systems also require frequent pumping and service.

Currently park staff members—who are already being stretched thin by federal budget cuts and hiring freezes—are also being pulled from trail work, visitor programs, and habitat restoration just to keep toilets flushing and water safe to drink. This is due to a constant need to pump the septic systems because critical components of the treatment plants are failing. To make matters worse, a $1.2 million maintenance backlog that’s only getting bigger sits behind fixing this issue. 

A Costly $26 Million Solution 

Fortunately, help might be just five miles south, in the small town of Moab. City officials there have proposed a bold plan: hook Arches up to Moab’s modern water and wastewater treatment systems, sparing the park from the brutal cost of rebuilding its own infrastructure from scratch.

But it won’t come cheap. The price tag for the connection? An estimated $26 million.

Earlier this month, Moab’s City Council sent an urgent letter to Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), asking him to earmark a chunk of the Great American Outdoors Act’s $6.5 billion restoration fund for the project. That fund has already helped overhaul water systems at Bryce Canyon and the Grand Canyon — and now Arches is hoping to join the list before its system taps out for good.

“By connecting Arches to the city’s water and wastewater systems, we can eliminate the ongoing challenges associated with providing clean drinking water and adequate waste/wastewater disposal at Arches,” Moab’s leaders wrote. It would also save the park about $100,000 a year in operating costs — cash that could go back into trail maintenance, ranger patrols, and the work that keeps Arches wild and accessible.

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Arches Faces an Uncertain Future 

The future of Arches lays in the hands of congress. After years of administrative shake-ups and budget slashing across the National Park Service, nothing is guaranteed — not even basic services. Rangers have been forced to take on janitorial work, like cleaning bathrooms, and hiring freezes have gutted trail crews and maintenance teams.

However, if Congress doesn’t move quickly, Arches could find itself in a dire position; with nearly two million visitors and no safe water to serve them.

“My guess is that they’re working on the budget in Congress right now,” Moab Mayor Joette Langianese said on April 8. “It’d be great for us not only to send this in support of our project, but for the national parks in general.”

For the time being, Moab Mayor Joette Langianese urged swift support, noting that Congress is working on the budget now. “It’d be great for us not only to send this in support of our project, but for the national parks in general," Langianese said. Meanwhile, Sen. Mike Lee, who back in 2018, once opposed major park funding, has most recently backed public land initiatives. 

Overall, conservationists are hopeful Lee might come through in support for Arches. For them, this isn’t just about saving a national park. It’s about preserving one of America’s greatest playgrounds for adventure — a place where you can lace up your boots, disappear into a sandstone canyon, and drink deep from the wild.

source https://www.mensjournal.com/travel/arches-national-park-water-crisis