DENVER—Ranchers took their fight over the proposed expansion of an Army training site in southeastern Colorado to federal court Wednesday, arguing the military didn’t seriously consider the environmental impacts of stepped-up training in order to advance their overall expansion plans.
They want U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch to order the Army to conduct another environmental review. He delayed a decision for at least another month to allow lawyers to submit more arguments.
At issue is the Army’s plan to increase the number and intensity of training exercises on the 370-square-mile Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site. The Army also wants to expand the site to about 525 square miles to accommodate new weapons, tactics and soldiers from Fort Carson, 90 miles to the northwest.
Ranchers have been fighting the overall expansion since the Army first announced it three years ago, picking up the support of many state lawmakers and members of Colorado’s congressional delegation.
Matsch sided with the Army in saying he would only review plans for year-round training and accompanying construction on the existing site, and not the expansion, because the expansion is still up in the air.
But he said he had concerns about whether the Army addressed the impacts of the increased training on vegetation and wildlife as well as surrounding property owners. The site is now used only about four months a year.
“I don’t see anything in there specifically addressing that we’re going to be out there all the time,” Matsch said.
He pointed to comments in the review that said bald eagles wouldn’t be harmed because they tend to avoid military activity. He grew testy when the government’s main lawyer, Thomas Snodgrass, tried to avoid digging into the details of proposals to deal with the environmental impact.
Snodgrass argued that the ranchers didn’t challenge the specifics of the review and asked for a chance to submit a brief on the subject if Matsch was going to consider it. He agreed.
The ranchers’ lawsuit mainly argues that the Army shouldn’t have separately considered the expansion and the increased training and that the Army didn’t try seriously consider any alternatives, including shipping troops elsewhere for exercises.
The ranchers’ lawyer, Stephen Harris, said doubts about the thoroughness of the review are a recurring theme in the suit and fair game for Matsch to consider.
Congress has blocked funding for the expansion and opponents hope lawmakers in Washington will permanently bar the project.
This year, Colorado raised another roadblock with a state law barring the state from selling or leasing land for the expansion.
On Tuesday, the Army announced that Fort Carson wouldn’t get one of its expected new brigade combat teams because of budget cuts.
Rancher Mack Louden of Branson said opponents also hope Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison succeeds in convincing military leaders to abandon plans to expand Pinon Canyon and instead conduct more exercises at Fort Bliss, Texas.
“Everyone is looking for a time for this to be over. We have realized in our community that the government works very, very slowly,” he said.
