Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

May 10, 2024 

Representatives Celeste Maloy (UT-02), Blake Moore (UT-01), John Curtis (UT-03), and Burgess Owens (UT-04) oppose the draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) announced by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). The SEIS is being conducted to reconsider the Utah Department of Transportation’s (UDOT) Right-of-Way (ROW) permit to construct the Northern Corridor Highway in St. George.

“This new BLM supplemental is the latest effort by DC bureaucrats to undermine Southern Utah leaders as they plan our communities’ future,” said Rep. Maloy. “The Northern Corridor is an integral part of the transportation plan, and local leaders in Washington County have already completed more than necessary mitigation.”

“The BLM’s recent announcement is negating the decades of work and millions of dollars that Utah’s local officials have spent to address transportation needs in Southern Utah while balancing environmental and conservation needs. I am deeply frustrated with this continuous federal overreach and dismissal of the people closest to the land. I encourage Utahns to participate in this comment process and urge the Administration to remember who they are leaving behind by ignoring local voices,” said Rep. Moore.

“For over a decade, local elected officials have worked with the federal government to map out the Northern Corridor as directed by the law,” said Rep. Curtis. “To see the BLM ignore the law and betray these local officials, while stifling access and growth in this area, is maddening. Unelected bureaucrats from Washington, don’t understand this land better than those who have lived and worked on it for generations.”

"Utahns have long awaited the completion of the Northern Corridor Highway to address regional transportation needs as our communities continue to grow," said Rep. Owens. "The BLM's decision to revisit the project's environmental impact undermines decades of collaboration and careful planning between stakeholders and local leaders. It's time to prioritize the voices of our communities and move forward with the Northern Corridor project." 

Background: 

Washington County’s population has been rapidly expanding, driving the need for the proposed right-of-way highway in the Northern Corridor. The highway is intended to connect Red Hills Parkway to Washington Drive Parkway and would reduce east-west traffic between I-15 and SR-18. In 2021, the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service authorized the proposal. However, the BLM and FWS have decided to revisit the project’s environmental impact.