[CPEO-MEF] New Highway Planned Across Goldwater Range

[Aimee Houghton <aimeeh@cpeo.org>]

NEW HIGHWAY PLANNED ACROSS GOLDWATER RANGE
Gov. task force should review encroachment effects of Yuma Area Service Hwy.

NEWS RELEASE:  for immediate release Tuesday, June 10, 2003
Center for Biological Diversity

Contact:   Daniel R. Patterson, Desert Ecologist  520.623.5252 x 
306  or  906.2159

YUMA -- As Governor Napolitano holds the first meeting of Arizona's 
Military Facilities Taskforce this morning in Phoenix, the state and 
federal governments have plans underway to build a major highway across the 
west side of the Barry M. Goldwater Range.  The Range is a powerful 
advantage for the state, said Deb Sydenham, director of the Arizona 
statewide compatibility project. "It is essentially the jewel of the whole 
military system we have in the state."  Arizona Daily Star, Billions are at 
stake in keeping military units, June 9, 2003.

The Yuma Area Service Highway would link the proposed port of entry at San 
Luis to I-8, cutting east and north on a remote route through the Range and 
important habitat for the imperiled flat-tailed horned lizard and other 
Sonoran desert wildlife.  The proposed route encourages urban sprawl and 
traffic to the east of fast-growing Yuma that will undermine the military 
mission and wildlife habitat values.  The estimated cost of the highway is 
$86,700,000.

"It makes no sense to build a new highway in the middle of nowhere across a 
military range and endangered wildlife habitat," said Daniel R. Patterson, 
Desert Ecologist with the Center for Biological Diversity.  "The Governor 
and task force should take a hard look at this recipe for encroachment, and 
direct ADOT to choose a smarter alternative to the west that avoids the 
Goldwater Range and wildlife areas."

The highway project's National Environment Policy Act analysis is being 
done through an quick environmental assessment, rather than a full 
environmental impact statement. The Federal Highway Administration is the 
lead agency, with the Arizona Department of Transportation and Yuma 
Metropolitan Planning Organization cooperating as the proponents of the 
project. However, the Federal Highway Administration's own regulations 
implementing the National Environmental Policy Act, which appear at 23 CFR 
Part 771, require a more detailed environmental impact statement for a new 
controlled access freeway (23 CFR 771.115(a)(1) and a highway project of 
four or more lanes on a new location. (23 CFR 771.115(a)(2).  The public 
comment period on the environmental assessment for the highway is open 
until June 27.

There is virtually no analysis in the thin environmental assessment of the 
military base encroachment issue, either from the highway project or 
cumulative future actions on or adjacent to the Barry M. Goldwater 
Range.  There is very little analysis of affects to wildlife.  Local 
citizens groups, including the Center for Biological Diversity and Yuma 
Audubon Society are not opposed to the new San Luis port.  They are calling 
for a more westerly highway route, which would avoid the BMGR and sensitive 
wildlife habitat areas.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Aimee R. Houghton
Associate Director, CPEO
1101 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 1000
Washington, DC  20036
tel: 202-452-8039; fax: 202-452-8095
Email: aimeeh@cpeo.org
www.cpeo.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~