But, what the heck. That's never stopped us before.
In retrospect, former Gov. Mike Leavitt, the Legislature and the Utah Department of Transportation should have realized that a proposal to build a major highway through or near wetlands that adjoin some of the most important waterfowl habitat in North America would spark environmental controversy and litigation. After all, the state had fought a similar legal war over the widening of U.S. 189 in Provo Canyon just a few years before.
The fight to protect the Provo River - one of the state's few blue-ribbon trout streams - delayed the Provo Canyon project and inflated its costs even more dramatically than the similar battle over Legacy. But because of that struggle, generations of Utahns today and in the future will be able to enjoy a beautiful, living stream on the eastern doorstep of one of the state's most populous counties.
And more efficient transportation, too.
In short, that battle was worth it.
If you doubt that, compare a drive up Provo Canyon with one up Parleys Canyon to Mountain Dell on I-80. Notice the view of Parleys Creek. (There isn't one. The creek was channeled underground.)
The state's mistake with Legacy was to push construction forward when it still was in the middle of litigation. In an effort to ram the highway through, state officials bet the farm on winning in court. They lost. That blunder contributed heavily to the state's losses, because UDOT was locked into a contract that required it to pay for idled workers and equipment.
The lesson is that major highway projects that threaten critical wildlife habitat or scenic splendor, such as the Provo River or the Great Salt Lake marshes, will inevitably involve intense environmental give and take, because it is difficult to build a balanced political, financial and engineering consensus.
Utahns cannot prosper without expanded highways. But they will be poorer without protected canyon streams, trout and blue-winged teal. Legacy Parkway and Provo Canyon show that transportation projects must take account of both. And can.
