For the time being, the headwaters of West Bay in St. Andrew Bay have been spared. Along the most pristine estuary in the entire Gulf of Mexico, this Bay County area was penciled in by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as the future destination of the first airport to be built since Sept. 11.

But a federal judge granted a temporary injunction against the FAA, after a coalition of environmental groups and fans of Panama City’s current airport sued. The Corps suspended the permit in December after learning about the injunction.

Critics say the federal law requires picking the least environmentally damaging area, which would mean leaving the airport at its current site. The new airport is supposed to be built on 4,000 acres of land about 20 miles north of Panama City, neighboring Pine Log State Forest.

Critics also point out “that in a county of 161,000 residents, the current airport is so quiet that the control tower shuts down every night at 10.”

During the injunction, the Corps is also re-investigating a previously approved de-watering project that would create 7 million cubic yards of fill needed for the airport. Conservation groups are wary the process could pollute nearby waterways.