BLM Again Considering Four-lane Highway through Utah’s Red Cliffs National Conservation Area

On Friday, October 3, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced it is reassessing a right-of-way application from the Utah Department of Transportation for the four-lane Northern Corridor Highway through the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area near St. George, Utah. The proposal has been rejected seven times, mostly recently in December 2024 by the BLM and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).

“Despite years of failed attempts, Washington County officials have made it clear they are going to keep spending taxpayer dollars on a plan to ram a highway through a National Conservation Area,” said Holly Snow Canada, Executive Director at Conserve Southwest Utah. “Pursuing this unlawful and outdated idea would cause significant harm to the people, plants, and wildlife of Washington County, even though better transportation solutions exist.”

Public comments are due on Monday, November 3, 2025. The BLM has previously considered this application in a 2020 Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and 2024 Final Supplemental EIS. The December 2024 decision confirmed the federal agencies’ rejection of the Northern Corridor Highway project, which would tear through critical habitat for the imperiled Mojave desert tortoise, violate five bedrock environmental laws, damage iconic scenic vistas, disrupt treasured outdoor recreation opportunities, and set a dangerous precedent for developing federally protected conservation areas across the U.S.

According to the final Supplemental EIS, the Northern Corridor Highway is a poor option for the St. George community, as it would increase fire probability and frequency, result in permanent loss to designated critical tortoise habitat, spread noxious weeds and invasive plants, and adversely impact the highest number of cultural and historical resources of all considered alternatives. Friday’s announcement contradicts this decision.

At Issue

Since 2006, local residents and concerned citizens across the country have voiced opposition to the highway, pointing out transportation alternatives outside of Red Cliffs National Conservation Area (NCA) that would do a better job of relieving traffic congestion, supporting economic growth, and protecting wildlife, scenic beauty, and local access to trails.

Despite immense local opposition to the proposed highway, the BLM and FWS approved a right-of-way for the Northern Corridor Highway in the final days of the first Trump administration, prompting Advocates for the West and local and national conservation organizations to file a lawsuit challenging the decision. The lawsuit argued that the highway violated multiple federal laws, including the Omnibus Public Land Management Act, Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act, and others. A settlement agreement was reached in November 2023, ultimately paving the way for federal agencies’ rejection of the Northern Corridor Highway project. Shortly after, a U.S. District Court remanded the 2021 approval of the right-of-way, confirming that the highway would fragment sensitive wildlife habitat for threatened species, reduce outdoor recreation access to the area, and set a dangerous precedent for protected public lands across the U.S.

Background

The 44,724-acre Red Cliffs NCA is part of the larger Red Cliffs Desert Reserve that is collaboratively managed by the BLM, the FWS, the State of Utah, Washington County, and other municipalities. The Reserve was established under the 1995 Habitat Conservation Plan as part of a “grand compromise” to protect ~61,000 acres of public lands for the Mojave desert tortoise (listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act), while opening 300,000 acres of state and private lands for development. The Red Cliffs NCA was established in 2009 by Congress to “conserve, protect, and enhance … ecological, scenic, wildlife, recreational, cultural, historical, natural, educational, and scientific resources” of the public lands within the unit.

The region is home to important populations of the threatened Mojave desert tortoise and other at-risk plants and animals including the Gila monster, burrowing owl, and kit fox. The Mojave desert tortoise is on a path to extinction according to leading researchers, and its habitat in southwest Utah, which houses some of the densest tortoise populations, is especially vulnerable given recent and anticipated growth in the region. The NCA is 45 miles from Zion National Park, and includes 130 miles of trails, two wilderness areas, heritage public use sites, Native American cultural artifacts, several threatened/endangered species, and one of Utah’s most popular state parks, Snow Canyon State Park. People from all over the state, country, and world visit to hike, mountain bike, rock climb, horseback ride, photograph, and marvel at the expansive red rock landscape.

Read more about this case.