Additionally, the Park Service “will have to spend millions to lay spurs to connect with the cable,” claims Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
Yellowstone officials did not immediately respond to inquiries about PEER’s claims, which also question whether the park’s world-renowned thermal functions could be impacted by trenching to bury the cables.
“National parks should not be subsidizing telecom companies,” said PEER Executive Director Tim Whitehouse said Tuesday, noting that the right-of-way fees Diamond Communications initially faced go to the U.S. Treasury. “Nor do national parks have an obligation to wire every square inch of park grounds.”