OCR Text |
Show The original alinement of Hades Tunnel was along steep canyon terrain. Both the inlet portal and the outlet portal would have been highly conspicuous. An access road 1.6 miles long with a permanent bridge across the North Fork of the Duchesne would have been required. About 40,000 cubic yards of spoil material would have been deposited on the hillside near the outlet portal. The proposed plan has been changed as follows: ( a) The inlet portal would be located at the base of the canyon where it would be less conspicuous and hidden from the road; ( b) The outlet portal would be below Highway 35 and out of site from the road way; ( c) No permanent road would be required for the inlet portal. Instead there would be a temporary access and crossing of the river; ( d) The length of the tunnel would be increased by about 4,000 feet and the waste material by about 12,000 cubic yards; and ( e) The access road to the outlet portal would be relocated out of sight from Highway 35. Construction of Hades Tunnel would be expected to cause permanent landscape scars at both portals, along the access road to the outlet portal, and in the spoil material disposal area. There would be temporary stream bank disturbance and turbidity in the North Fork of the Duchesne. This disturbance is not expected to permanently damage aquatic habitat or terrestrial habitat. Tunnel waste would be deposited along a 1,700- foot section of Wolf Creek near the base of the highway. In order to prevent eroding material from washing into Wolf Creek the stream channel would have to be relocated. The amount of relocation would be dependent upon finalization of feature location plans but would range between 300 and 1,700 feet. The channel alteration could destroy much of the aquatic habitat and temporarily disturb the terrestrial ecosystem of the affected areas. The existing natural beauty of this setion of stream would be significantly degraded by the stream relocation. The spoil pile itself would be an unattrative intrusion upon the landscape. Under the proposed plan the length of Wolf Creek Pipeline has been reduced to about 300 feet and the alinement 236 |