WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd January, 2020) A new push by an Italian resort developer and lawmakers in the town of Tusayan to create a massive commercial, retail and residential complex near the south rim of the Grand Canyon would ruin the natural wonder with light pollution and by draining water from nearby aquifers, the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) said in a press release on Wednesday.
"This latest scheme still threatens catastrophic harm to the canyon's life-giving springs, the millions of visitors who flock to this natural wonder and the native people who've called the canyon home for millennia, CBD co-founder Robin Silver said in the release.
The Tusayan Town Council is set to vote on January 23 to submit a revised application from the town and the Italian developer Sitlo for permission to build access roads through a nearby national forest, a prerequisite for the development, the release said.
The CBD release warned that pumping groundwater from the local aquifer to supply thousands of homes will dry up springs and seeps that support wildlife and recreation on Grand Canyon's South Rim.
"This could also spell catastrophe for Havasu Creek, the lifeblood of the Havasupai Tribe. It would also harm the Grand Canyon's incredible biodiversity, which include some of the most threatened ecosystems on Earth, the release said.
In addition, Stilo's development would stress the park's aging infrastructure, flood the park's world-famous dark skies with light pollution and dramatically increase traffic congestion, the release added.
In 2016, the Forest Service rejected Tusayan's original right-of-way application, citing local and national opposition and concluding that the development threatened the Grand Canyon.
Supporters of the project say they want to bring economic development - including housing, high speed internet and cheaper utilities - and tourists to the rural region of Arizona.
Town Manager Eric Duthie recently told the Phoenix New Times that the development reflected efforts to build housing for residents because locals face serious housing challenges.
New Times also said that several members of the Town Council work for companies connected with the Italian developer Sitlo.
In addition, New Times discovered and published a video by, Sitlo, describing the project as a massive commercial, retail, and residential complex with hotels, restaurants, and shopping districts comparable to the Epcot theme park at Walt Disney World in the state of Florida.
