Contractor being sought on solar plant at Natural Bridges fhe National Park Service has announced that the contract for the site work portion of the photovoltaic power system project at Natural Bridges National Monument he? been readvertised. The new bid opening has been set for 2 p.m., November 8, 1978 in the office of the Superintendent at Canyonlands National Park, Moab. The work to be contracted by the National Park Service includes construction of a 1,400 square foot building; clearing and grubbing 1.8 acres of land; placing approximately approximate-ly 1,500 cubic yards of borrow; 10,000 square yards of excavation and embankment; road work; extension of sewer and water systems; revision of the existing LP gas system; electrical work; erection erec-tion of a 1,200-foot chain link fence; and construction of an interpretive overlook and a foundation for an array of about 18,000 sq. ft. of solar cells. The successful bidder will complete this work in preparation for the actual installation of the solar system by Lincoln Laboratory of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The photovoltaic system will be used to convert sunlight directly into electrical energy for use and storage. This differs from the more familiar solar heat collection systems which gather and store heat from the sun's rays. It would supply electricity for all of the monument's facilities including includ-ing employee housing, maintenance mainte-nance shops, and the public visitor center enough electricity for 10-15 average homes. The site work is projected for completion by early summer of next year, while the solar system is scheduled to be installed by early winter, 1979. Plans, specifications, and other information are available from the Superintendent of Canyonlands National Park. For the benefit of interested contractors, a meeting to discuss the pending contract has been scheduled to be held at Natural Bridges National Monument at 1:30 p.m., October 24, 1978.