CDOT delays northeast Denver I-70 expansion project by a few months
Until now, the impact-statement drafts have cited modeling from the Denver Regional Council of Governments that goes through 2035, but White said DRCOG recently updated its models through 2040. The Clean Air Act requires federal environmental impact documents to include data from the peak year of expected air emissions in the project area; given metro Denver’s growth, White said, 2040 will have worse emissions than 2035.
That projection hits on a key point of controversy over the project. The Sierra Club and community groups in March filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency, challenging recently changed federal air quality standards that allow for the I-70 project.