The case was brought by the Alliance Defending Freedom on behalf of Andrew Snelling, who works with Answers in Genesis.

AIG said in a statement: “Apparently, Dr. Snelling’s most recent research project on behalf of a high-profile group (AiG) was deemed a threat to the prevailing viewpoint of the canyon’s formation and timing. The language used by park officials and its reviewers to describe Dr. Snelling’s proposal decry that a Christian and creationist seeks to do the research.”

The group said Snelling’s proposed study “could yield results that will undermine an idea that is heavily promoted inside the park: namely, that the canyon’s strata ...