A federal judge has rejected a request by off-highway vehicle groups to halt implementation of a Bureau of Land Management travel management plan that curbs motorized access in a pristine Utah canyon until the merits of a federal lawsuit are resolved in court.
Judge Dale Kimball’s decision issued Wednesday does not end the lawsuit filed in December in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah by the BlueRibbon Coalition, the Colorado Offroad Trail Defenders and its vice president, Patrick McKay.
But Kimball’s order rejecting the request for a preliminary injunction said the complaint failed to meet the legal standards required to prevent BLM from enforcing the Labyrinth Rims/Gemini Bridges travel management plan.
“The court concludes that Plaintiffs have not demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits of their claims against BLM. Therefore, they have not established that they are entitled to a preliminary injunction,” the order states.
