The Smokey Wire : National Forest News and Views
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This story seems to deal with some substantive and procedural questions that are popular on this blog. Environmental groups are offering alternatives that the Forest Service doesn’t seem interested in. Elson, the Flagstaff District Ranger, acknowledged that some parts of the FWPP plan do fly in the face of the Mexican spotted owl recovery plan’s … Read more
Thanks to Terry Seyden for this.. In our previous pieces here and here on this litigation, I wondered a bit why the power users in Phoenix, and the townspeople of the Village of Ruidoso should suffer because of an issue between WEG and the FS on monitoring. Apparently, WEG did see it the same way. … Read more
FOREST SERVICE Santa Fe NF grazing New lawsuit: WildEarth Guardians v. U. S. Forest Service (D. New Mexico) On June 4, WildEarth Guardians, Western Watersheds Project and Caldera Action sued the Forest Service and Fish and Wildlife Service over continued trespassing by cattle from the Santa Fe National Forest onto the Valles Caldera National Preserve, … Read more
To start your week (and month) off right … FOREST SERVICE Umatilla NF ski area permit Court decision in Murray v. United States (Court of Claims) On June 5, 2023, the Court of Federal Claims dismissed this breach of contract claim involving an authorization by the Umatilla National Forest for snowmobile use in the parking … Read more
[Note: This editorial was published last week in azcentral.com, a “Part of the USA Today Network.” Bruce Whiting’s account takes place in Arizona, Utah, and Colorado, but the story is much the same for all federal forestlands in the western US, including Washington, Oregon, California, and Idaho. BZ] Opinion: Four generations of my family helped … Read more
FOREST SERVICE Coronado NF mines Court decision in Patagonia Area Resource Alliance v. U. S. Forest Service (D. Ariz.) On September 1, the district court denied a preliminary injunction against the Sunnyside and Flux Canyon exploratory drilling projects in the Patagonia Mountains on the Coronado National Forest. The Sunnyside Project is a seven-year exploratory drilling … Read more
I only recently started specifically looking for BLM cases, so I may be catching up late on some of them. Most seem to involve mining and energy. (This summary includes one Forest Service case.) BLM Nevada Let’s Go Lithium Project New lawsuit: Center for Biological Diversity v. Haaland (D. Nev.) On July 7, CBD and … Read more
BLM Idaho phosphate mine Court decision in Center or Biological Diversity v. U. S. Bureau of Land Management (D. Idaho) On June 2, the district court vacated a set of approvals by the BLM authorizing development of the Caldwell Canyon phosphate mine in southeastern Idaho. The court had reversed the decision in January, and … Read more
From E&E News: Environmental groups are suing the Forest Service to halt mineral exploration in Arizona’s remote and biologically diverse Patagonia Mountains. The legal fight is playing out in close proximity to a separate mineral project the Biden administration hopes to fast-track. Groups including the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition, the Center for Biological Diversity and … Read more
GUEST VIEW Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation: Cottonwood ‘fix’ needed ROCKY MOUNTAIN ELK FOUNDATION Excerpt follows…. Do they have a valid point? In April of 2022, the Hermit’s Peak fire in New Mexico began as a prescribed fire that got out of control. The Forest Service’s Wildfire Review Report noted that pre-treatment was delayed by a … Read more