UP road commission loses appeal over wetlands dispute

Marquette – An appeals court is offering sympathy to a road commission in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, but not a favorable decision in a dispute over a new road and wetlands.

The Marquette County Road Commission lost an appeal Tuesday. Local officials wanted to create a more direct route for trucks between a mine and a processing mill.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency raised objections over the impacts. The road commission decided to give up when the application was transferred to a different agency.

The appeals court acknowledged that the road commission was put through a “long, expensive and frustrating” process. But the court says the commission can’t sue the government because it voluntarily surrendered without waiting for a final ruling.