Zion

Intro: Zion National Park is located in Utah and goes through Washington, Iron and Kanes counties 2. Located at (37.322811, -113.045113), it is considered as the backcountry 2. Here travelers can go hiking, canyoneering, and climbing. However, it is very dangerous to pursue in any of these amazing activities. Zion National Park is the oldest and most visited place in Utah 2. The very first inhabitants of the Zion region were Nomadic people about 12,000 years ago. They hunted mammoths, giant sloths, and camels until extinction. They then had to rely on feeding off small animals and plants. When the Ancient Puebloans settled in Zion, about 2,000 years ago, they practiced agriculture and built monumental buildings 2. After some period of time, both groups left due to extreme droughts. Later came few Native Americans and early Mormons. The early Mormons settled and farmed the Virgin Region in 1847. It took about 200 million years for Zion to be eroded from tributaries of the Virgin River. The tributaries erode canyon walls and monoliths. Also, some hundreds of freestanding arches are formed. For example the Crawford Arch and Kolob Arch are features of erosion 2. In July 1909, President Taft declared Zion a national park. He claimed more than 15,000 acres of land was to be part of Zion National Park 2.
 * Zion National Park **

 Geologic History: Zion National Park sits on the edge of the Colorado Plateau, a large elevated area that covers parts of Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado. 240 million years ago, however, this area was dramatically different. It was a flat sea basin near sea level, surrounded by mountains 2. Runoff from the surrounding mountains eroded the mountains, and deposited the sediment in the flat basin that is today Zion National Park 2. Over the next 240 million years, the climate changed as therefore the type of sediment deposited changed. When the area was filled with water, limestone or shale formed. When the area was a desert, sandstone formed. Over time, water filled with minerals seeped into the sediment and cemented parts together, creating rock. There is a large amount of evidence in the form of fossils embedded in the sediment and exposed at the surface. Fossils show evidence that different climates and biomes were present in different times. For example the petrified wood of conifers from 220 million years ago helps prove that the climate was more wet, and had lakes, swamps, and streams, along with think vegetation and diverse life 2. Petrified wood is a type of fossil that forms when mineral-rich water seeps into dead trees and the minerals precipitate out, forming rock. There are also teeth of some creatures like the phytosaur, and trace fossils like tracks that have been exposed at the surface. At this time, the rock started to push upwards because of tectonic collision. It pushed the rock up to as high as 10,000 ft, as is still occurring. It can still cause earthquakes and landslides. The uplift created a very steep slope, which increased the streams competence and capacity. The steep slope made streams more efficient and allowed rivers to cut deep valleys, which Zion National Park is now well known for. The rivers exposed the once covered sedimentary rock layers and created steep cliffs 2.

 Climate: Zion National Park has a climate known as dry steppe, or dry semiarid 2. Climate refers to the general weather patterns over an area over a long period of time. It is the average of weather over an area. A dry semiarid climate means that the yearly precipitation is not as great as the average evaporation. This can happen for a few reasons. First of all evaporation has to be high, which occurs close to the equator where the sun heats earth the most. Evaporation is also high in areas with a low humidity because it is easier for water vapor to get into the air. The other part requires that there is not a lot of precipitation. This happens around 30° north and south of the equator because of uneven heating from the sun. The sun heats the equator the most annually, so naturally it gets heated the most. Hot air is less dense than cold air, so the hot air rises. When it rises it cools, and when it cools its ability to hold water vapor decreases and eventually some water-vapor condenses and forms clouds. At 30° North and South of the equator air falls, and when air falls it condenses and increases its ability to hold water, so clouds rarely form. Zion National Park is at about 37° north latitude, so around Zion air is falling and clouds form less often 2. This causes the dry, hot temperatures that are found around Zion National Park. Dry hot areas like Zion National Park do not get a lot of rain, so the ground is not used to absorbing water. When is a lot of rain, for example during thunderstorms, the ground does not absorb it, and the water runs down the steep slopes causing flash floods. These have enormous eroding power and help create the river valleys that Zion is famous for.

Biomes: Zion Nationl Park is a Riparian and Aquatic biome 2. Zion is a host of 900 species of plants. Here there are cottonwood trees, cattails, willows, aqadic plants, and rushes. However when one visits different parts of Zion, in terms of elevation, there is different species of life. In the lower elevations of Zion, there are arid grasslands and desert shrubs. This includes high temperatures grasses/desert shrubs, and cactus. Cactus adapt to the climate by finding shade, storing water and collecting nutrients. In the mid-elevation level, there is Pinyon-Juniper Forest. It includes desert forest, evergreens that can resist drought, and lots of trees. Animals include tarantulas, foxes, pallid bats, roadrunners, and coyotes live here. Lastly, cacti/desert succulents, ferns, and grasses grow in this part of Zion 2.

 Human Impact: Zion National Park is at risk from human impact, but they’re addressing the issues as best they can. Zion is very popular, and many people visit the park each year. To reduce the amount of energy they use, Zion uses a shuttle bus to replace thousands of vehicles which burn lots of fossil fuels 1. They also constructed two green buildings in Zion showing their intension to reduce their carbon footprint as well as replacing old materials with environmentally preferable materials. Other improvements include recycling more, using renewable bio-fuel, and conserving water 1. In order to protect Zion National Park even further, in 2009 Barrack Obama designated 124,406 acres of the park as wilderness. That added another layer of protection; the idea is that areas designated as wilderness are completely void of human impact 1. In wildernesses, humans are the visitors, and the natural order of life stays natural. There can be no roads, commercial enterprises nothing motorized, and no structures except what is necessary for safety. Finally, Zion is at risk from the way humans’ impact the natural cycle of fire. In nature, fire is a good thing. It causes plants to evolve, and thins out competing species. Further, it recycles nutrients, and opens holes in the canopy 1. Today, humans think of fire as a bad thing because it destroys our homes and can wreck lives, so we try to suppress it. By putting the fire out, we are changing the natural order of things, and ruining the natural cycle of life.

Sources: 1.) "Climate Friendly Parks ." Zion National Park. National Park Services, n.d. Web. 9 June 2010. .

2.) "Zion National Park." Zion National Park. National Park Services, n.d. Web. 9 June 2010. .