Five citizens groups on Wednesday sued the U.S. Interior Department over plans to build park infrastructure and services at the Energy Department’s former plutonium pit production site at the Rocky Flats Nuclear Plant in Colorado.
The groups suing are: the Rocky Mountain Peace & Justice Center; Candelas Glows/Rocky Flats Glows; Rocky Flats Right To Know; Rocky Flats Neighborhood Association; and Environmental Information Network (EIN) Inc.
They filed suit in U.S. District Court for Colorado against Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke; the Interior Department’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and acting Fish and Wildlife Service chief James Kurth.
The plaintiffs say the Interior Department plans to build trails and a visitor center on lands around the former plutonium factory without first completing an environmental assessment required by federal law. They are asking the court to halt any work on the recreation area until federal environmental obligations are met.
The Interior Department had not filed a reply with the court at press time for Weapons Complex Morning Briefing.
The Energy Department finished cleaning up Rocky Flats and transferred most of the property to Interior in 2007. DOE turned over another tranche of land at the site in 2014.