Zion National Park
By: Jonathan Cloutier
Relief
Map
Relief Map of Zion National Park
(Landforms and features
such as canyons and
rivers are identified)
Country Map
Map of Zion National Park located in the USA
Why Zion Became A National Park
Zion became a national park in 1919 and it was
Utah's first National Park. Zion became a National
park to protect 3 separate ecosystems which
include more than 900 species of plants not found
anywhere else in Utah. It was also a National Park
because it was a beautiful area of land for tourists
to visit. Soon after the state of Utah began paving a
state highway which was followed by a railroad. By
the summer of 1917 touring cars could finally bring
visitors to Zion Canyon.
Environmental issues affecting Zion
A few environmental issues affecting Zion are:
• Automobile congestion: 4,000 to 5,000 vehicles
enter the park yet there are only 400 parking
spaces.
• noise pollution: noise from automobiles is
bouncing off the canyon walls to disrupt
tranquility.
• damage to vegetation near the roads: from cars,
cyclists and pedestrians.
• human littering and waste: pedestrians walking
the trails constantly leave trash along the paths.
Special landforms and Features in Zion
In Zion there are many amazing landforms and land
features. That includes ancient paths that native people
and pioneers walked a long time ago. There is also
massive sandstone cliffs that could amaze you for hours,
accompanied by really beautiful canyons. For example,
Zion Canyon has a deep chasm with almost vertical walls
that are so narrow that sunlight can barely get to the
bottom. There are rivers such as the Virgin River, that
show erosion with waterfalls and rapids. The highest
point is Horse Ranch Mountain, which is 8,726 feet above
sea level, it is located north of the Kolob Finger canyons.
The lowest point is called South Camp Ground which is
3,900 feet above sea level.
How Tech is Used in Zion
There are many forms of technology in Zion. For
example, they have clean running propane
buses to shuttle visitors and reduce automobile
traffic, noise and pollution to other visitors.
Their visitor center is a energy efficient building
that protects the environment. They also
created the Green Fleet Bicycle Project to
encourage using bicycles for short trips to
reduce vehicle emissions.
Types of Rock in Zion
In Zion there are multiple
kinds of rocks. The most
common is sandstone and
usually appears around
cliffs. Sandstone is a primary
sedimentary rock. Another
very common sedimentary
rock is limestone and it is
usually found near or at
cliffs. Siltstone is found
mostly in cliffs and slopes,
and it is a sedimentary rock.
Sandstone
Siltstone
Limestone
Formation of Zion
Zion is more than 250,000,000 years
old, and it was formed in a very
interesting way. A long time ago all of
Zion was a huge desert basin that was
covered in a large amount of slowly
moving streams. These massive rivers
carved their way through the terrain.
As time passed, the earth shifted
causing the Plateau to move up
slowly, making the sea drain away.
The 2,000 foot cliffs are now all that is
left of those massive sand dunes.
Now the park includes canyons,
plateaus, rivers, and waterfalls, and it
is constantly changing with each
passing decade.
How is Zion
Changing
Zion is changing in a few ways.
One way is that the streams
rapidly fall of the plateau into the
rock. Those streams carry
sediment and large rocks that
form deep and narrow canyons. At
one time, a landslide created a
dam in the Virgin River to form a
lake. At some point the lake
drained to form a valley. In 1995 a
land slide damaged the road in the
valley. Since then there have been
multiple flash floods that have
increased the water volume in the
Virgin River, damaging the scenic
road and valley.
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