ELR Citation: 54 ELR 20045
No(s). 2:23-CV-923-DAK-JCB (D. Utah Mar 20, 2024) (Kimball, J.)

A district court denied outdoor recreation groups' request to halt implementation of BLM's 2023 travel management plan (TMP) closing over 300 miles of routes previously available for off-highway vehicle use on public lands within the Labyrinth/Gemini Bridges Travel Management Area in Utah. The groups sought to preliminarily enjoin BLM from enforcing the new TMP, arguing BLM violated the Appointments Clause by acting through an employee, that the route closures violated the John R. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act by impermissibly creating a buffer zone around a wilderness area, that BLM acted arbitrarily and capriciously by failing to respond to relevant and significant public comments and by offering explanations that were counter to evidence, and that BLM violated NEPA by failing to take a "hard look" at how the choices before it affected the environment and failing to conduct an EIS. The court found the groups failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits of any claims and denied the motion for preliminary injunction.