Utah Politicians Condemn BLM’s Northern Corridor Decision

The Utah Delegation opposes the final decision announced by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) selecting the Red Hills Parkway Expressway as the preferred alternative route for a Northern Corridor Highway in St. George.

“Washington County negotiated with the federal government and all stakeholders to create land designations to protect desert tortoises, among other things, and also a route for the Northern Corridor. The designations have been in place for a couple of decades, but the agencies are not working fairly to get the Northern Corridor permitted, and they revoked the last permit. The county is not getting the benefits of the bargain they made in good faith. The Federal Government needs to be a better partner,” said Rep. Celeste Maloy.

Newly elected senator John Curtis agrees.

"The federal government needs to honor its commitments made in good faith with the people of Washington County. Years ago, stakeholders worked tirelessly to create a balanced Northern Corridor solution. It is disappointing the Biden Administration would ignore the law which calls for a meaningful transportation solution. I look forward to working with the Department next year to resolve this misguided decision,” said Curtis.

Senator Mike Lee chimed in as well.

“Once again, the Biden administration has chosen to ignore Utah’s needs and the practical benefits of the northern corridor alternative, opting for an alternative that will do nothing to alleviate congestion in Washington County," said Sen. Lee. "This decision is a setback for our communities and regional growth and harmful to prime desert tortoise habitat in Zone 6. I am fully committed to doing whatever it takes to reverse this decision and finally complete the construction of the Northern Corridor.”

Some Northern Corridor Background:

Washington County is one of the fastest growing counties in the nation. Its rapid growth has driven the need for a right-of-way (ROW) highway that would reduce traffic between the northeast and northwest sides of St. George.

In 2009, Congress passed, and President Barrack Obama signed into law, the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act (the Act), which included the Washington County Lands Bill. It directed the Secretary of the Interior to identify a route for a highway through the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area (NCA) in Washington County, Utah.

In January 2021, the Trump administration issued a record of decision permitting Washington County’s request to build a ROW highway. In exchange, Washington County would add Zone 6 – 6,813 acres within the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve – to the conservation area to offset any losses to the Mojave Desert tortoise habitat. In 2023, the Biden administration repealed that record of decision to revisit the project’s environmental impact.

In July, the Utah Congressional Delegation wrote in support of the proposed alternative route, UDOT ROW Alignment, and in opposition to the Red Hills Parkway Expressway alternative considered in the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. The Red Hills Parkway Expressway would keep east-west traffic north inside St. George City and would create congested public access to the historic Pioneer Park and the adjacent Red Hills Desert Garden.

Washingt0n County Commissioner Adam Snow said the Northern Corridor is critical and anyone who lives here knows it.

"This decision is a political decision for donors only. These donors want to kill off the road. Growth and transportation is against their mission and I think the people of Washington County need to understand that this is what Conserve Southwest is."

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