Last month, a group of environmental organizations and activists filed a lawsuit in federal court to stop the extension and expansion of South MoPac until a comprehensive environmental analysis is done on the project. At issue is SH 45 SW, the controversial road project that is planned to run on top of the Barton Springs segment of the Edwards Aquifer, which feeds into Barton Springs and provides drinking water for tens of thousands of people.

The lawsuit, which has been filed by the Save Our Springs Alliance, Save Barton Creek Association, and Clean Water Action (among others), alleges that SH 45 SW is only one piece of a larger project that also includes MoPac South and the MoPac South intersections project at Circle C that is designed to eventually connect MoPac to I-35.

The suit continues on to argue the Texas Department of Transportation and its partner, the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority (CTRMA), have violated federal environmental protection laws by artificially segmenting a much larger project into these three parts, so environmental impact studies would only address each separate piece, without studying thecumulative effects of the entire project on Barton Springs. More info>>