OMAHA - A federal judge has delivered a blow to a controversial project to extend a high-voltage, electrical transmission line through Nebraska's Sand Hills. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge William Martinez revoked a federal permit that would have allowed the Nebraska Public Power District to kill or severely disturb the endangered American burying beetle as a consequence of building its R-Line project. The 225-mile, 345-kilovolt transmission line would extend from near Sutherland, northward to Thedford, and then eastward to near Clearwater.

Tom Kent, the chief executive officer of NPPD, said Thursday morning that the ruling will delay but not stop the project. "The project is still very important to the people of Nebraska and critical to improve the reliability of the electrical system," Kent said.

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