MIAMI, Okla. (AP) — Work on a $5.8 million bridge project has stopped after federal officials told an Oklahoma county that its construction method could harm a threatened fish species.
The Miami News-Record reports the Ottawa County Commission says work has been halted on the Stepps Ford bridge near Commerce.
An engineering official says the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was concerned about how a planned barrier would affect the habitat of a threatened catfish population. The wall was intended to create a dry area for work on the bridge.
He says a new consultation with federal officials will have to occur before work can begin again. The consultation could take at least 90 days.