DENVER—The head of a water conservation group filed a motion Monday to intervene in a lawsuit seeking to block construction of a natural gas pipeline through roadless forest in western Colorado.
Harold Shepherd of the Moab, Utah-based Center for Water Advocacy sought to join plaintiffs opposing the 25.5-mile Bull Mountain pipeline planned on the White River and Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison national forests.
The U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have given final approval to the project to be used by Gunnison Energy and SG Interests in northern Gunnison County.
Wilderness Workshop and other environmental groups have argued the pipeline would violate a resurrected 2001 federal ban on development of roadless national forest land. The BLM has said no roads will be built and that the new pipeline will parallel an existing pipeline.
BLM officials also contend that building the pipeline around the roadless areas would have greater environmental impacts because the route would be longer and go through riparian areas.
The plaintiffs say the Forest Service relied on outdated information to write an environmental analysis of the project.
Shepherd argued in documents filed Monday in U.S. District Court that the environmental analysis also didn’t address how water rights will be affected. He said the Forest Service also must follow the Clean Water Act.
The Forest Service and BLM did not immediately take a position on whether Shepherd should be allowed as an intervenor, according to court documents.
