(1) there is interest in providing direct public access between the Wasatch Range front and back in the State of Utah by linking ski resorts in the area by means of a skier transport, lift, or tramway;
(2) the primary ski resorts in the Wasatch Range in Utah are situated within a 5 mile radius, but currently there is no convenient transportation link between the resorts;
(3) The Canyons Ski Resort and Solitude Mountain Resort have proposed a public access transportation connection through construction of a minimally invasive transportation alternative, called ‘SkiLink’, which would cross approximately 30 acres of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest from private land at The Canyons Ski Resort in Summit County, Utah, to private land at Solitude Mountain Resort in Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah;
(4) the land and resource management plan for the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest prohibits new alpine ski lifts on National Forest System land;
(5) despite efforts by the Utah Department of Transportation, the Wasatch Front Regional Council, and the Utah Transit Authority to increase transit and carpool access in Big Cottonwood Canyon, daily traffic on winter weekends ranges between 8,000 and 9,000 vehicles per day;
(6) studies show that the establishment of the SkiLink would reduce ski season vehicle traffic between The Canyons Resort and Solitude Mountain Resort by as many as 18,000 cars per year or 1,000,000 fewer miles driven per year, and the amount of the reduction is expected to increase over time;
(7) SkiLink would produce immediate traffic benefits, including a reduction in PM 2.5 and other emissions in Parley’s Canyon and Big Cottonwood Canyons;
(8) a preliminary environmental review of the proposed SkiLink corridor assessed the potential impact of SkiLink on special status species, water quality and watershed resources, and visual resources and found that no federally listed species or critical habitat would be affected and that any water, plant, and wildlife issues could be addressed through mitigation;
(9) minimally invasive, environmentally sound construction techniques would be used to construct SkiLink, including the use of helicopters for concrete placement and tower installations;
(10) the winter sport industry in Utah is a significant contributor to the economy of Utah, with the ski/snowboarding industry bringing $1,260,000,000 to Utah during the 2009/2010 ski season and resulting in 20,000 jobs; and
(11) economic analysis of SkiLink shows it would infuse another $50,000,000 a year into Utah’s economy and create 500 new jobs in the tourism and hospitality industries by creating the largest interconnected ski network in the United States and providing access to more than 6,000 acres of ski terrain.
U.S. Congress - Text of S.1883 as Introduced in Senate Wasatch Range Recreation Access Enhancement Act
