North Liberty moves to protect turtles during pipeline construction

NORTH LIBERTY - Officials in North Liberty say they plan to watch for ornate box turtles while installing a sewer pipe to the future site of Liberty High School.

'One of the largest [ornate box turtle] populations here in Iowa is about seven-and-a-half miles northeast of the project,” said Nick Bergus, communications director for the city. 'We haven't seen turtles in this area, but they could be there, and honestly we want to be good stewards.”

The ornate box turtle is classified as 'threatened” in Iowa, according to the Department of Natural Resources. Bergus said the city is taking all possible steps to mitigate the potential for harm to the species. On Thursday the city announced it hired an environmental consultant to help keep the turtles out of danger.

The sewer pipe will run several miles from the site of the new school to the wastewater treatment plant in North Liberty. Some of the pipe will run near Muddy Creek, which officials plan to protect by installing a temporary silt fence.

Last winter property owner Dr. Gary Weinman filed a lawsuit against the city in an attempt to stop them from installing the line on his property, in part citing concerns about disrupting the ornate box turtle. A judge denied Weinman's request to halt construction in February. Weinman did not immediately return a call seeking comment Thursday.

Liberty High School is expected to open in 2017.