Environmental groups filed formal notice Wednesday of their intent to sue the U.S. Forest Service, claiming the agency did not properly analyze whether exploratory drilling for a new controversial reservoir that will serve Colorado Springs and Aurora will harm endangered or threatened species, including the Canada lynx.
The seven groups also claim the Forest Service did not consider the long-term potential of the proposed reservoir and dam in the White River National Forest to harm protected species as required, according to a letter the groups filed with the agency.
“We believe that the Forest Service and the Fish and Wildlife Service have not met their duty to protect listed species from both the activities permitted in the geotechnical investigation itself nor the activities that will flow from this investigation,” said Jen Pelz, Wild Rivers Program director for WildEarth Guardians, one of the groups that may sue.
For example, the Lynx and its habitat could be hurt by access roads and heavy construction that could fragment its habitat, and invite more human activity into the area, among other negative effects, the notice said.
The proposed lawsuit would challenge a decision the White River National Forest made in March to allow the cities to drill exploratory holes 150 feet deep in 10 locations with rigs eight feet wide and 22 feet long in the Homestake Valley to help determine whether the geology would support a dam for a reservoir that could hold up to 20,000 acre feet of water. Crews would be allowed trim vegetation down to six inches in 20-foot by 40-foot rectangles to do the work, agency documents said.
The Forest Service found the drilling may affect, but was not likely to affect, the Canada lynx and its habita,t and the project was likely to have no effect on other threatened and endangered species, such as the Mexican spotted owl, Ute ladies’-tresses orchid, bonytail chub and other fish species.
“This action by the Forest Service is not only contrary to its mandate to protect natural areas, but is also illegal because the Service chose to cut corners to make its decision,” said Ramesh Bhatt, chairman of the Conservation Committee of the Colorado Sierra Club in a statement.
The Forest Service declined to comment on the pending litigation. The agency has 60 days to respond to the letter, a news release from the environmental groups said.
Colorado Springs Utilities could not comment on whether the letter would delay the drilling planned for the summer and fall, spokeswoman Jennifer Kemp said.
Colorado Springs and Aurora are working together on the reservoir in Eagle County’s Homestake Valley to help support growing populations. The project could provide access to water rights both cities have owned since the 1950s but have never developed.
In addition to the formal legal challenges, environmentalists say building a new reservoir does not make sense because flows have consistently dropped in the Colorado River watershed.
“The Colorado River is already tapped out and has no more water left to give — certainly without ecological collapse. Building a new reservoir will not bring more water and is not the solution to climate change,” Pelz said.
Colorado Springs Utilities is aiming to minimize the environmental impact of the reservoir, which is one piece of a long-term water plan that includes water conservation, reuse, transfers from agricultural users, among other sources, Kemp said.
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