Forest cleared for long-embattled pipeline through Bernheim Forest wildlife corridor

For more than six years, conservation advocates and Kentucky's largest utility have been at odds over the construction of a 12 mile natural gas pipeline that cuts through a section of Bernheim Forest and Arboretum's protected Cedar Grove Wildlife Corridor.

In December, 2024, the Kentucky Supreme Court decided it would not review an appeals court ruling that allowed Louisville Gas & Electric Co to condemn the mile-long stretch of forest-owned land. The clearing of the forest began in April, and since then, Bernheim's president and CEO Mark Wourms said the transformation has been sobering.

"Particularly when you realize that this whole swath had these 90-foot tall oaks right down this way, those are gone," Wourms said.

Throughout the process, the conservation team at Bernheim has outlined