LETTERS: HIGHWAY GETS TOO CLOSE TO ELEPHANT ROCKS PARK

To the editor:

Wake up, Missourians. The bulldozers are at the gates of the park. Did you know that the new route under construction for Highway 21 south of Potosi will take it right outside the entrance to Elephant Rocks State Park? If the construction continues, you'll be able to climb the rocks for a spectacular view of Highway 21. No longer will there be a one-mile buffer zone between the park and the highway as there is now. The isolation of Elephant Rocks is part of its beauty, but with this project we will pollute one of Missouri's finest and most renowned geologic wonders with the roar of diesels and the whine of speeding traffic.

If you want to try to stop this project and preserve the quality of one of Missouri's best parks, call your state senator and representative and give them a piece of your mind. And you could call Sen. Danny Staples, who represents that area, at 573-751-3534 in Jefferson City.

And the bulldozers? Is it too late to stop them? Maybe so. And, then, maybe not.

TOM NICHOLS

Farmington