LAS VEGAS (AP) - A federal judge in Las Vegas has turned down environmentalists who asked him to throw out a legal settlement that would legitimize a controversial road in northern Nevada.
Monday's ruling by U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt means the 13-year-old case is likely to grind on for some time unless those involved in the case reach a new agreement.
Hunt encouraged all sides to do that.
The case involves a gravel road along the Jarbidge River in Elko County near Idaho that washed out in 1995. The U.S. Forest Service initially decided not to rebuild the road, citing concern about threatened bull trout in the river.
Protesters worked to rebuild the road themselves. That prompted the federal government to sue local officials, a lawsuit the two sides have agreed to settle.
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