WildEarth Guardians

Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Guardians Tackles Urban Sprawl in Denver

Suit Filed to Stop Tolled "Beltway Boondoggle" in Denver Metro Area
Contact: Jeremy Nichols (303) 573-4898 x 1303

Additional Contacts:

Josh Pollock, Rocky Mountain Wild, (303) 552-6001
Neil Levine, Attorney for WildEarth Guardians and Rocky Mountain Wild, (303) 455-0604

Denver—Targeting the toll on wildlife and people, today WildEarth Guardians and Rocky Mountain Wild today filed suit in federal court against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to stop a proposal to sell the eastern side of the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge for a four lane, high-speed tollway.

“Our open space is critical to our quality of life and the prosperity of our communities, yet the Fish and Wildlife Service is not only selling off part of the Rocky Flats Wildlife Refuge, but also signing off on more sprawl and unplanned development,” said Josh Pollock, Conservation Director for Rocky Mountain Wild.  “We need smart planning and smart solutions, not more highways or tollways.”

The suit follows the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s December 2011 decision to transfer ownership of a 300-foot strip of land that runs almost three miles along the eastern edge of the Rocky Flats Wildlife Refuge to the Jefferson Parkway Public Highway Authority.  The Authority, a private entity, intends to turn Indiana Street, which currently skirts the east side of Rocky Flats, into a four lane tolled highway.

In approving the transfer, the Fish and Wildlife Service never analyzed the impacts of the highway, even though it would destroy hundreds of acres of wildlife habitat, open the door for hundreds more acres of suburban development next to one of the Denver metro area’s last largest blocks of undeveloped open space, and fuel the region’s air quality problems.

Among the wildlife species that would be most impacted is the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse, a rare and threatened species that depends on high quality streamside habitats along the Front Range.  The loss of open space has been cited as the primary threat to the Preble’s.

Often referred to as a “beltway boondoggle,” the Authority has stated that the highway will facilitate more development and highway construction in Jefferson County.  Eventually, the Authority intends to link the tolled highway to C-470 and the Northwest Parkway that will cut across open space and through communities.

“This isn’t just a highway, it’s a link in a chain of planned construction that promises to choke our open spaces, make our skies smoggy, and leave our wildlife without a home,” said Jeremy Nichols with WildEarth Guardians.  “The last thing the Denver Metro area needs is a new highway.”

Citing the threat of the highway to their communities, the Cities of Golden and Superior have already filed suit against the Fish and Wildlife Service over the highway decision.  WildEarth Guardians and Rocky Mountain Wild’s suit follows the cities, but aims to achieve broader environmental protection in and around Rocky Flats.

Although the Fish and Wildlife Service claims that as part of the transfer of ownership, it will acquire a section of land owned by the State of Colorado, called Section 16, located southwest of Rocky Flats, the Service has also indicated that the acquisition could happen independent of transferring ownership.  Most recently, the Service acquired ownership of the minerals below Section 16, meaning that even if the transfer does not happen, Section 16 will remain largely protected.

“The Service’s acquisition scheme would be like selling your yard to pay for your home remodeling project,” said Neil Levine, the attorney representing WildEarth Guardians and Rocky Mountain Wild.  “We can conserve our valuable open space and wildlife habitat without having to sacrifice them at the same time.  We have better solutions and this lawsuit aims to secure them.”

The lawsuit specifically challenges the Fish and Wildlife Service failure to comply with the U.S. Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act.  It was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado in Denver.  The Fish and Wildlife Service has indicated that it intends to transfer the ownership of the 300-foot strip of Rocky Flats by September 1, 2012.  The parties to the lawsuit expect the court will issue a ruling by that date.