The U.S. Supreme Court has set a hearing date for the Uintah oil train dispute

A years-long legal battle that could send billions of gallons of oil down the Colorado River will be heard by the United States Supreme Court in December.

Case, Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle Countyasks the Supreme Court to review a lower court decision which found insufficient environmental analysis of a railroad project in eastern Utah. That project, the Uinta Basin Railroad, would build about 80 miles of new track to connect oil production sites with existing rail routes.

Opponents said the expansion will increase the risk of spillage of hazardous materials into the most important waterway in the western United States. Because of those concerns, Eagle County filed a lawsuit seeking to stop the project.

At issue is whether the National Environmental Policy Act requires agencies to consider environmental impacts beyond the immediate scope of a project. In August, the D.C. Court of Appeals ruled that the Surface Transportation Board erred by failing to consider the risks to the Colorado River.

That led to an appeal by the Seven County Infrastructure Coalition, which supports the project, to be filed with the Supreme Court on Dec. 10. Earlier this year, leaders who support the project said existing environmental reviews had fairly rated the proposal.

“We are optimistic about the Supreme Court review and confident in the thorough environmental assessment conducted by STB,” Keith Heaton, director of the Infrastructure Coalition, said in a June statement. He added that the project is “vital to the economic growth and connectivity” of the region.

Numerous Colorado officials, including Attorney General Phil Weiser, filed briefs in support of Eagle County’s call to end the project. Colorado Senior U.S. Senator Michael Bennett and Congressman Joe Neguz, whose district includes Eagle County, also opposed the project.

“I hope the Supreme Court will seriously consider Eagle County’s arguments, the concerns raised by the Colorado attorney general and numerous local governments in their court hearings, and the consequences for those most affected by a potential derailment in the upper Colorado River.” , – Bennett. the statement says.

The Colorado Supreme Court has filed several cases recently. The judges ruled earlier this year against Colorado in the case of disqualification of Donald Trump from the election. In 2023, the court also ruled in two Colorado cases managed web designer from Colorado can refuse LGBTQ clients in business, and the state in other ways violated the husband’s first amendment rights by jailing him on harassment charges.