An effort will begin this week to spray weed killer inside Grand Canyon National Park to help prevent wildfires.
The park and the Grand Canyon Railway will spray two types of herbicide along railroad tracks to kill weeds, reducing the risk of train wheel sparks setting a fire to the vegetation. The park and railway say the effort will also help control invasive species at the landmark location.
Killing weeds at a place like the Grand Canyon requires a significant amount of environmental review. Officials signed off on an environmental assessment in 2009 that determined the weed control effort will not hurt the environment. The park says the two herbicides have low toxicity levels.
