The Grand Canyon of the Colorado River Essay

The Grand Canyon is a slope-sided river valley surrounded by the Colorado River in the United States. It is 446 kilometers (277 miles0 long, 29 kilometers (18 miles) wide and has a depth of approximately 1,800 meters (Kaiser 17). The Grand Canyon has various tourism sites, which include the Kaibab Forest, the Grand Canyon National Park, Hualapai Indian Reservation and the Havasupai Indian Reservation. The Colorado River is estimated to have established its course nearly five million years ago thus the estimation of the existence of the Grand Canyon. The Native Americans mostly inhabited the area by building different settlements in the Canyon. The Pueblo people viewed the area as a holy site where they made a pilgrimage, and the first person to view the Canyon was Garcia Lopez who arrived in the area in 1540 (Kaiser 19). The Canyon is popular for its colorful and intricate landscape, and the overwhelming size. The Grand Canyon has a long history with its composition understood through geology. The area has favorable weather and surrounding which promote the existence of rich vegetation and animals, and has attracted federal protection in an effort to protect and support tourism activities.

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The Grand Canyon forms part of the basin that forms the Colorado River that has been in development for approximately 70 million years. The Canyon has nine caves whose walls have minerals such as uranium and lead. It was formed from an erosion that exposed entire geologic rows and columns on earth. The Canyon has its main geological exposures range from approximately 2 billion and 230 million years ago (Timmons & Karlstrom 67). The surrounding of this area contains some geological evidence of some Aeolian deposits and the Supai Group of elements. The course and the base level of the river changed about 5.3 million years ago, which affected the Grand Canyon by increasing the levels of erosion and then created the Canyon walls through differentiation erosion. Later, around one million years ago, a volcanic eruption deposited some lava and ash in this area being the youngest rocks in the area, which increase the attractiveness of the Canyon. Therefore, the geology of the area explains the development of the Canyon and the important elements in the area.

This area traces its history back in 500 BC when the first community, Puebloans who were Native Americans, arrived and settled here. (Timmons & Karlstrom 79). Later in the 16th century, in 1540, the Europeans arrived and settled in the area. In 1857, Lieutenant Joseph was appointed to lead an expedition to assess the area's feasibility. The expedition was followed by a visit by John Strong in 1858, where he became the first geologist to visit the Canyon. From 1869, the Americans showed more interest in the area making more trips there, and the term Grand Canyon was first used in 1871. In 1889, the construction of a rail along the Colorado River began which made the area an official monument in 1908 and led to its declaration as a national park in 1919 (Turner 112). After the declaration as a national park, the first settlers in the area were Lees ferry, miners, members of the Phantom Ranch, and the members of the early Grand Canyon village including Ellsworth Kolb and Emery.

In 1903, Theodore Roosevelt the United States president visited the area. The president was a conservationist, which influenced his decision to establish a game preserve at the Grand Canyon in 1906. The action led to the reduction in livestock grazing in the area and the eradication of predators including wolves, mountain lions, and eagles. The Grand Canyon was later declared a national monument and national park in 1919 under President Woodrow Wilson. Stiff opposition from mining and land claim holders followed this decision. The United States federal government began a campaign to restore the Canyon's ecosystem in 2008, which informed a decision to suspend all mining activities in 2009 (Turner 127). The much opposition from landowners and mining claim holders led to the decision to put the area under federal protection. The protection was to ensure that the area was preserved as a national park and all mining were stopped to restore the area's ecosystem.

The Grand Canyon was considered a good environment for a national park due to its favorable weather conditions. The forests are high, and the weather is winter snowfall while along the river and the low elevation locations the weather is hotter. The area is generally dry but receives precipitation twice annually, in late summer and during the winter seasons characterized by serious thunderstorms. The southern rim receives average annual precipitation of 16 inches and 60 inches of snow, with the northern rim experience 27 inches of precipitation and 144 inches of snow (Kaiser 28). The temperatures in the area vary with the hottest temperatures exceeding 37.8 degrees, while the winter season goes below zero degrees up to -17.8 degrees. The weather conditions are extreme at times affecting Canyon exploration and hiking. This area has the cleanest air within the United States, but sometimes dust storms and forest fires affect the quality of air.

The favorable weather in the area supports the existence of approximately 1737 different species of known Vascular vegetation, 167 fungi species, 64 moss species and 195 lichen species found in the national park (Kaiser 42). The rich vegetation is due to the elevation change between the Colorado River and the northern rim. The area has sixty-three plants that were given special attention by the US Wildlife Service. The Canyon also hosts 90 species of mammals of which 22 are bat species and 18 rodent species. The biological diversity of the area is because it has five out of seven life zones with three out of the four types of deserts in North America. The life zones are Canadian, Hudsonian, Upper Sonoran, Transition and Lower Sonoran. The geomorphology, climate, and geology influence the distribution and composition of the plant series in the Grand Canyon (Kaiser 51). Therefore, the area is rich in vegetation, and the climate supports different species of animals.

The rich vegetation, animal species and favorable weather have made tourism to become the main activity in the Grand Canyon. It is classified as one of the world's best natural attractions, which attracts an average of five million tourists, both local and international, every year. The visitors comprise of 83% from the United States, and the rest 17% were visitors from outside countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, Japan, Canada and the United Kingdom (Stampoulos 87). Tourism from the Grand Canyon earns the United States economy above 900 million dollars annually. The most popular tourism activities in the Grand Canyon are helicopter tours, rafting, running and hiking (Annerino 148). Camping sky walking and skydiving are also activities in the park. These activities provide a variety of fun events which helps attract more tourists to the area. Therefore, the Grand Canyon is one of the premier sites in the United States, and it makes a major contribution to the revenues the nation earns through tourism activities.

The history and discovery of the Grand Canyon have helped the government to transform the area to a source of different benefits for government and the citizens of the United States. The benefits are social, economic and environmental.

The economic benefits of this area are job creation, earning revenue to the government and the promotion of Arizona. The Canyon has significantly contributed to the creation of job opportunities in the United States, both direct and indirect. The Grand Canyon has employed an approximate of 8,900 workers who earn an average 31 million as labor income every year (Kaiser 94). The area also hosts different business people and investors who depend on the visitors to make their earning. Tourism in the region also earns the economy revenues approximately 900 million dollars annually. This amount boosts the economy and helps the government to run its services and manage the citizens effectively. The park has also helped to put Arizona in the map and earning revenues to the state thus elevating its standards and that of the residents.

Socially, the Grand Canyon has parks and reserves, which are good sites for social activities and interaction among different people. Activities such as hiking, skydiving, running, and sky walking encourage interaction between people thus creating a stronger social connection within individuals (Annerino 169). It is also a platform for interaction and integration between cultures because it attracts visitors from across the world. Therefore, it enhances an understanding of different cultures by bringing different cultures together during the various tourism activity.

The Grand Canyon plays an important role in the environment. It provides shelter and food to different species and animals and supports rich vegetation. The forests in the area play an important role in the formation of rain and weather of the area. The Grand Canyon is categorized as the area with the cleanest air. Thus, it helps in cleaning the air of the surrounding environment (Kaiser 92). The park has also enabled the preservation of specific types of the plantation and different mammal species.

Conclusion

Finally, the Grand Canyon formed through the curving of the Colorado River approximately 5 to 6 million years ago. The area was first discovered by the Native Americans and then by the Europeans who exploited the minerals such as uranium which were in the area. When the government of the United States discovered the rich vegetation and attractiveness of the area, it suspended mining activities and protected the area to preserve the nature and lives of plants and animals in the parks. The area has mixed weather depending on seasons such as winter and the late summer. Tourism is the main activity in the area, which earns the government revenues of approximately 900 million dollars annually. The area benefits the government and citizens through the creation of revenues and employment, provision of different social sites and contributing to environmental preservation.

Works Cited

Annerino, John. Hiking the Grand Canyon: a Detailed Guide to More Than 100 Trails. New York: Sky horse Publishing, 2017.

Kaiser, James. Grand Canyon: the complete guide. United States: Destination Press, 2018.

Stampoulos, Linda Lee. Visiting the Grand Canyon: views of early tourism. Charleston: Arcadia, 2013.

Timmons, J Michael, and Karl E Karlstrom. Grand Canyon geology: two billion years of Earth's history. Boulder: Geological Society of America, 2012.

Turner, Jim. Arizona: a celebration of the Grand Canyon State. Layton: Gibbs Smith, 2012.