Tucson, AliceA federal judge is scheduled to hear the case on Wednesday in a lawsuit filed by a conservation group challenging the Interstate Administration’s approval of Interstate 11. A proposed north-south highway in Arizona will exacerbate the situation by destroying the pristine Sonoran Desert and harming endangered desert turtles and other wildlife. Air pollution.

of lawsuit The agency says it failed to consider other modes of transport, such as rail, and evaded the required environmental review before approving the 280-mile highway between Nogales and Wickenburg. The western alternative of the planned interstate will wind through the desert wilderness of the Avra ​​Valley, a rural area between Saguaro National Park and Ironwood National Monument. It disrupts hundreds of archaeological and cultural sites and spreads an invasive buffalo grass known to fuel wildfires.

what: Hearing before U.S. District Judge John C. Hindelaker on federal motion to dismiss conservation group’s challenge to Interstate 11.

when: Wednesday, January 25, 2:00 p.m.

Where: Evo A. DeConcini US Courthouse, Courtroom 5B, 405 W. Congress St., Tucson, AZ 85701.

Who: The Biodiversity Center is represented by Wendy Park. After the hearing, she will be available for interviews with representatives from the Sonoran Desert Conservation Coalition, Tucson Her Audubon Her Society, and Ironwood Her Friends of the Forest.

Background

In November 2021, the Federal Highway Administration approved a 280-mile corridor for Interstate 11. It lies between the border towns of Nogales and Wickenburg, Arizona, northwest of Phoenix. The project could become part of an interstate highway to Las Vegas and eventually extend across the entire western United States between Mexico and Canada.

Federal agencies, local governments, and elected officials oppose the proposed western option. Includes the City of Tucson, the City of Sawarita, the Pima County Board of Supervisors, Congressman Raul Grijalba (D-Arizona), the U.S. Reclamation Service, and the National Park Service.

Concerns include suburban sprawl, groundwater pollution, wilderness harm, wildlife habitat and recreation in Western Saguaro National Park, Tucson Mountain Park, and Ironwood Forest National Monument.

They also ensured that the interstate highway would mitigate environmental harm from other projects, including the Bureau of Reclamation’s Tucson Mitigation Corridor and land protected under Pima County’s Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan. I am concerned that this will lead to the development of protected land that has been degraded.