It's the standard they're setting, and if they just plow ahead, one day American history will judge them very harshly. Central among the protectors' complaints is that the National Park Service did not adequately study the effect of such a massive construction project on the river or the surrounding wildlife and vegetation. The Merced River is one of the few federally designated 'wild and scenic' rivers, and the reason it's designated as such is to protect it and the surrounding environment. Eden said federal officials failed to do the proper studies for widening the road and neglected to look into the effects on species such as the great gray owl and the willow flycatcher. We're here to say it's not too late to fix it.
Every federal contract has an escape clause.
We've been doing patchwork repair on the roads for years, so it's time to plan for the long term and a safer road. Further, Gediman said it's too late to object to the project now, especially after Yosemite officials have held four public meetings and the road repair project has been in the news since the 1997 flood. The Wilderness Society, another environmental organization, agreed with Gediman. Jay Watson, California-Nevada regional director of the society, said his organization read the construction plans more than a year ago. Watson said there was time to protest the project long before construction began.