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Forest region hits grim milestone

[1] [2] [3] [4]

Covering Idaho, Montana and portions of the Dakotas, Region 1 of the U.S. Forest Service has reached a grim milestone.

Over 35,000 acres of forest projects on Region 1 National Forests are stymied by litigation. The amount of timber tied up in lawsuits (355 million board feet) is now more than region’s entire timber harvest of 321 million board feet.  The situation will only get worse as activist groups sue the Forest Service to halt the Stonewall Vegetation Project [7] in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest and pursue other lawsuits thanks to the Cottonwood decision [8]. Here’s a breakdown from data the Forest Service provided:

Number of Projects Sum of Estimated Acres Sum of Estimated Volume (MMBF) Litigation Status
2

1,805

15.9

Volume not under contract and complaint filed but NEPA decision not enjoined.
4

10,889

88.5

Volume not under contract, NEPA project decision enjoined
7

11,973

116.9

Volume under contract and continuing litigation, contracts not suspended
6

6,057

55.25

Volume under Contract, NEPA project decision enjoined and contract suspended
1

4,410

79

Volume not under contract, complaint filed, Decision withdrawn.
 

35,134

355.55

Grand Total