The Environmental Protection Information Center (EPIC) has filed a new lawsuit against California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)  to stop the proposed expansion of US Highway 101 through the Richardson Grove.

The section of highway is just a few miles south of the Avenue of the Giants, and passes through one of the most significant remaining stands of California Coast Redwoods.

CalTrans proposed the project in 2007, claiming that  it is necessary to accommodate larger commercial trucks. However, the project would damage or destroy more than 100 redwoods, many of them 1,000 to 2,000 years old.

The lawsuit was filed on June 23rd by EPIC and allied citizens and environmental groups. Three previous legal challenges blocked construction and forced Caltrans to rescind all project approvals in 2014.

The courts have repeatedly found that Caltrans used faulty and inadequate environmental reviews.  In the most recent decision, the judge found that Caltrans had been “arbitrary and capricious” in its use of what the court called “faulty data.”

The latest Caltrans proposal fails to address objections raised in previous suits.

Learn more about the Richardson Grove project and the lawsuit on the EPIC website.