Jason Lesli, left, and Duane Nardi have lunch on the rooftop deck of Dornan's restaurant in Moose, Wyo. in Grand Teton National Park. (Ruffin Prevost/Yellowstone Gate file photo - click to enlarge)
By Staff Reports
MOOSE, WYO. — Grand Teton National Park is seeking public comment on its environmental assessment of a plan to replace the wastewater system at Moose and to upgrade other deficiencies in the community’s water systems.
The community has a handful of permanent residents and also hosts the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center and the National Park Service headquarters for Grand Teton, as well as some concessioners and cabins.
The water systems serving Moose have been in service for more than 50 years and have exceeded their design life, according to a statement released by the Grand Teton public affairs office.
The project would ensure efficient wastewater and water services, improve public health and safety, and meet requirements for fighting structural fires at the Moose and Beaver Creek developed areas. Upgrades and improvements would provide a safe, healthy and efficient working and living environment for park employees and their families while also ensuring adequate visitor services.
The environmental review examines three alternatives for replacing the wastewater system and the existing waterline from the Moose headquarters campus to the Beaver Creek area.
The preferred alternative proposed by the Park Service would replace most water system pumping, storage and transmission components. It would provide gravity flow of water for firefighting and potable use from a new 300,000-gallon tank located near Taggart Creek. A new wastewater treatment plant would be constructed near the Moose Post Office.
Another alternative would replace most water system components and use gravity flow, but would divide water storage between two new tanks, replacing those currently at the Taggart site and at Windy Point on the Teton Park Road. A 12-mile-long, pressurized sewer line would convey wastewater from Moose and the Jackson Hole Airport to the town of Jackson sewer system for treatment in the publicly owned treatment plant.
Planning documents are available at the Park Service web site or they can be requested from the park’s planning office by calling 307-739-3390. Hard copies are available at the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center in Moose and at the reference desk in the Teton County Library.
Public comments on the plan can be made online through April 27.
OMG! Can you imagine constructing a new house and not planning for water and sewer until construction is complete? Only the Government aka Grand Teton National Park would more than double industrial sites and industrial buildings in the Snake River flood plain, construct massive amounts of new multi-story employee housing, remodel and add administrative offices for ever increasing layers of bureaucracy and then want you, the public, to ponder the best solution for all the new pooo. Yet another example of the complete breakdown of leadership, planning and lack of common sense which continues to plague Grand Teton National Park, it is time for a change.