MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A coalition of conservation groups has filed a last-minute federal lawsuit seeking to halt plans to build the high-voltage Cardinal Hickory Creek power line across a Mississippi River wildlife refuge.
American Transmission Company, ITC Midwest, and Dairyland Power Cooperative Inc. want to build a 102-mile (164-kilometer), 345-kilovolt transmission line between Dubuque County, Iowa, and Dane County, Wisconsin. The cost of the transmission line is expected to exceed $500 million, but the utility claims the project will improve electricity reliability throughout the region.
A man who pretended to drown in the Mississippi River to escape heinous charges in North Carolina was found alive.
Part of the line was scheduled to pass through the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge near Cassville, Wisconsin. Federal wildlife refuges are havens for fish, wildlife, and migratory birds that use the Mississippi Flyway as breeding grounds. Millions of birds fly through the reserve, making it the only remaining stopping point for many migratory birds.
Opponents have been trying to block the project for years. The National Wildlife Federation, the Drifting Area Land Conservancy and the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation filed a lawsuit Wednesday in federal court in Madison seeking to block the refuge crossing.
Environmental groups are opposed to new power lines cutting through wildlife preserves.
The group claims the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued final approval for the refuge crossing in February without giving the public an opportunity to comment.
They also objected to an agreement between FWS and the utility that required the utility to relocate approximately 36 acres (15 hectares) south of Cassville to the refuge in exchange for 19 acres (8 hectares) within the line’s refuge. It claims to have arrived at the right amount. The group claims the agreement violates the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, which establishes a formal process for determining the use of protected areas.
Additionally, the groups argued in their filings that the injunction is needed immediately because the utility has already set up construction zones and begun construction on the river’s Iowa and Wisconsin sides. .
The lawsuit names FWS, shelter managers, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as defendants. Online court records showed they are being represented by U.S. Department of Justice attorney Kimberly Ann Cullen. She referred her questions to U.S. Department of Justice spokesman Matthew Neese, who declined to comment.
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Dairyland Electric Cooperative and ITC Midwest officials released a joint statement saying they were “regretted” by the lawsuit. They said land swaps could trade lower-quality wildlife habitat for higher-quality habitat and increase protection for birds, animals, fish and plants. They added that the lawsuit would only drive up costs and slow efforts to connect renewable energy sources to the electricity transmission system.
ATC officials were not immediately available for comment.
