Its purpose is to accommodate what the state has projected to be a doubling in traffic over the next twenty years. The Army Corps of Engineers is planning its own public comment period and hearing for the controversial wetlands permit. An alliance of farmers and environmentalists opposed to the project say it would cause urban sprawl and damage surrounding farmlands. Legacy Highway would cut through five counties, dividing much of Utah's last 1.2 million acres of productive farmland. Many residents fear that the project would facilitate developing low-density subdivisions on the few remaining farms in these counties.
New roads tend to fill to congestion level, propelling a vicious cycle of highway construction.
As a Western Hemispheric Shorebird Reserve Network Site, millions of shorebirds also depend on these wetlands. Utah, due to its surrounding mountain ranges, already has near-dangerous air quality levels. A highway in such close proximity to the mountains would exacerbate the region's air quality problems, according to Sierra Club. This year's Road to Ruin report identifies the 50 worst proposed new highway projects in 26 states. While the report's authors are not necessarily against all new roads, the roads named in the report would waste taxpayer money while hurting rural communities and small businesses, destroy farmland, diminish natural areas, and fuel sprawling development.