| 2/17/2006 8:52:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | BLM will delay release of Christo environmental report
by Jason Starr
Mail Staff Writer
The Bureau of Land Management received about 1,100 letters and e-mails during its “Over the River” public comment period, which ended last week.
The volume of letters caused bureau staff members to delay until fall its estimated release of the environmental assessment of the project.
The assessment, which will guide the bureau decision whether to allow the art project by artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude, was originally expected in June.
Bureau of Land Management Environmental Coordinator Pete Zwaneveld has read about 200 of the letters and said so far about 60 percent are opposed and 40 percent are in favor.
The project entails stretching sheets of fabric in sections across the Arkansas River from the Chaffee/Fremont county line east to Parkdale.
The bureau set a Feb. 10 deadline for public comment, but won’t disregard comments sent until the environmental assessment is completed. Zwaneveld said he received about 30-40 letters and e-mails daily until Feb. 10, but now only a couple each day.
Issues expressed by those who oppose the project centered on congestion and emergency response, impact on bighorn sheep and impact to birds that feed on the river.
Those in favor talked about economic benefits to the region, including rafting outfitters who see an opportunity in marketing rafting trips under the fabric.
Some of the letters, officials said, were simple “yay” or “nay” notes while others were longer dissertations.
“There is one classic letter in there,” Zwaneveld said. “I was just in tears reading it. It was hilarious.”
There are other factors slowing the environmental assessment process.
The Colorado Department of Transportation had a lot of questions about the traffic analysis produced by a Denver-based consultant hired by the artists. The analysis must be refined and a traffic plan created from it.
“That’s going to take longer than we all anticipated,” Zwaneveld said.
Bureau officials have asked Christo for a construction plan detailing when, where and how the foundation for the fabric will be installed along the river. That also will take longer than originally expected, Zwaneveld said.
“Thinking optimistically, it’s going to be fall now before we can get the environmental assessment completed,” he said.
Many issues expressed in written comments are the same as those expressed during three open houses hosted by the bureau in Cañon City, Cotopaxi and Salida last month. Some letters, however, opened officials’ eyes to issues they hadn’t previously considered.
One came from a postal carrier who delivers mail to canyon communities and was worried about on-time delivery.
Another discussed the possibility of birds of prey such as bald eagles – which are endangered and sometimes feed along the Arkansas River – flying into cables strung across the river before the fabric goes up.
Opponents mentioned rubber-necking drivers as a potential hazard on the winding canyon road.
“There’s plenty of places where if you’re not paying attention you can drive off the road really easily,” Zwaneveld said.
The bureau plans to summarize the 1,100 written comments on its Web site, www.blm.gov, during coming weeks.
Another public comment period will begin when environmental assessment is complete. Then people can appeal the decision which Zwaneveld said is a possibility because of the contentious nature of the “Over the River” proposal.
“You’re either for it or against it,” he said. “Nobody is in the middle. No matter what our decision is, somebody’s not going to be happy.”
An appeal would be heard in federal court and could take as long as a year to resolve.
“That’s something Christo is aware of,” Zwaneveld said. “If it gets appealed (he) is just going to have to bide his time until a decision is issued by the judge.”
In addition to Bureau of Land Management approval, permits will be required from the Colorado Department of Transportation, Colorado State Patrol, Fremont and Chaffee counties and Colorado State Parks.
The project is tentatively scheduled viewing during a two-week period in summer 2009.
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