Trans-Canyon Pipeline Repair

The National Park Service has announced that portions of the Grand Canyon Trans-Canyon pipeline will be repaired over the next 6 months. The project was set to being on Monday, January 26th near the Phantom Ranch. An approximate half-mile of the pipeline, from the lower Campground Bridge north to the Phantom Ranch, is to be replaced by contracted company Ortega Plumbing and Heating. Construction is estimated to be completed by July of this year.

Construction isn’t expected to affect the majority of park visitors. However, backcountry hikers should prepare themselves for any trips in to this area of the canyon. The NPS highly suggests that hikers stop at the Backcountry Information Center before any excursions to get the latest information, detours, water accessibility, etc.

The pipeline was built to transport water from Roaring Springs to the park in the 1960’s and measures out at 16 miles in length. Over the last 10 years or so, there have been numerous leaks in the aging aluminum pipeline. Although this project is only for a small section, full replacement cost is estimated at $100-150 million dollars.

For more information, read the article at nps.org.