PORT ANGELES — Olympic National Park has agreed to allow Verizon to study the effects of installing cellular equipment at Hurricane Ridge.
The park, which is required by law to consider proposals from wireless network providers, will release an environmental assessment once it is completed by Verizon, park spokeswoman Barb Maynes said.
Verizon Wireless, the largest carrier in the nation, has proposed to install “cell-related equipment” on the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center or a communications tower at the ridge, Maynes said.
The existing National Park Service tower is used for an automated weather station and an internal, two-way radio network for Olympic National Park rangers and employees.
Verizon proposes to replace the tower in kind and to install some of its own equipment, Maynes said.
No additional towers are being proposed for the park.
Verizon will create and develop the environmental assessment under the terms of the recently entered agreement, Maynes said.
Olympic National Park will seek public comments on the draft environmental assessment as soon as it is complete.
“We don’t have a specific timeline for that yet, but the environmental assessment will be released sometime in the future per this agreement, and we’ll go from there,” Maynes said.
Olympic National Park has no cell towers within its boundaries, Maynes said.
As a result, reception in the park is spotty.
When asked if the park had taken a position on wireless network expansion, Maynes said the focus remained on the Verizon proposal and “moving forward with the environmental assessment process.”
“We’re going to be eager to get additional details about their proposal and also to review the analysis of potential impacts,” Maynes said, “and then, of course, learn what the public input is.”
At Mount Rainier National Park, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile have applied for right-of-way permits to install telecommunications equipment on the popular Paradise Jackson Visitor Center.
The antennas would be placed below the roof-line of the visitor center.
Like Olympic, Mount Rainier National Park has no cellular installations.
Under the federal Telecommunications Act, the National Park Service is required to consider proposals from carriers such as Verizon for the installation of cellular facilities, Maynes said.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
