Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection v. Federal Highway Administration

Case stayed, pending NEPA re-evaluation and ESA effects determination.

Four conservation groups filed a lawsuit in the federal district court for the District of Arizona alleging that the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) had conducted an inadequate review for a proposed 280-mile interstate corridor in southern Arizona. Climate change-related allegations included that FHWA failed to quantify and analyze greenhouse gas emissions from increased traffic, construction and long-term maintenance of the project, suburban and exurban development spurred by the project, and an increase in idling trucks at the Mexico border. In addition, the complaint alleged a failure to examine “the cumulative effects of the wildfire risk and climate change on the integrity of the Sonoran Desert ecosystem.” The complaint asserted violations of NEPA, Section 4(f) of the U.S. Department of Transportation Act, the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act of 1958, and the Administrative Procedure Act.