Recent court wins tell US Forest Service to protect our national forests
On January , 2005, the US District Court in Minneapolis ruled that the US
Forest Service should have prepared an environmental impact statement for the
Big Grass timber sale, planned in the Echo Trail north of Ely, Minnesota. This logging along the Echo Trail
would have thinned and
clear-cut forests that serve as the corridor between the two areas of the BWCAW.
EA
and Decision Notice
Sierra Club appeal (pdf, 57k)
US District Court opinion (pdf, 1.3M)
Sierra Club press release
Sierra Club filed a lawsuit against the similar Tomahawk timber sale
on March 31, 2005, bringing up the same issues that the judge decided were
inadequate in the Big Grass timber sale.
Environmental
Assessment
Sierra
Club appeal (pdf, 251k)
Photo Essay from Tomahawk lands to be
clearcut
On March 31, 2005, the US District Court in Milwaukee ruled that the Forest Service failed to consider cumulative impacts of logging on Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, and halted the timber sales until the Forest Service fully complies with the law. Read more from our allies, Environmental Law and Policy Center.