Asphalt in Yosemite draws poor reviews from environmentalists

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif., (AP) Three years ago officials announced a plan to overhaul the park's canyon, creating a more scenic entry to its towering falls and reducing urban influences. But a proposal to repave one of the park's most popular trails with asphalt doesn't mesh with that back-to-nature goal, some park stewards say.

Environmentalists had hoped new paths to the base of Yosemite Falls would be built out of materials that blend in with the park's natural features. They say such surfaces, typically composed of polymers or resins mixed with crushed rock, look more like a real dirt trail and less like a strip of freeway. Such paths are being used in parks throughout the west and don't contain asphalt's petrochemical compounds, which could pose environmental threats.

But park officials say new kinds of pavement may not be able to withstand the the one million visitors who hike up the trail to the falls each year. In addition, the trail must be able to carry snow-removal equipment and meet federal standards for people with disabilities.

The $12.5-million Yosemite Falls project will replace a parking lot crowded with tourist buses and cars with a scenic picnic spot and will re-create views along the winding path to the falls that visitors saw more than a century ago.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)