A controversial highway project was passed by the Bureau of Land Management in southwest Utah. The building plans of the Northern Corridor highway were reapproved by BLM officials after the Utah Department of Transportation first proposed the idea in 2018. Some local leaders are considering the approval a victory, while local conservation groups are criticizing the project.
This new ruling reinstates a 2021 decision and clears the way for the construction of the four lane, 4.5 mile long road that will connect Washington Parkway and Red Hills Parkway in Washington County. The connection will cut through a 153 acre section of the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area.
“We revisited the previous environmental impact statements and encouraged the public to submit further comments for consideration in this environmental assessment,” Gloria Tibbetts, manager of the bureau’s Color Country District said in a statement. “We are committed to continually monitor our decisions and balance our responsibilities as public land managers and good neighbors.”
State and county officials are calling the project a key transportation piece for a fast-growing region.
The backlash for the project is coming from local environmental groups, as the project will likely pose a threat to the already threatened Mojave Desert tortoises that are native to the area.
Approximately 30-40 tortoises will be relocated according to state and local officials. They could be relocated up to 6,800 acres east to an area planned to be a new habitat. The groups argue that the land substitution doesn’t make up for the land lost.
The project was first approved in the last month of President Trump’s first term. After President Biden took office, the project approval was reversed after environmental groups sued.
Author: Andrew Streeter
Photo courtesy of the U.S. Fish and & Wildlife Service
Editor: Hannah Clove
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