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Sierra Club Lawsuits

Challenging Timber Sales in the South

Case Updates:

September 6, 2006

On September 6th the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit handed a victory for anyone who likes to hike, hunt, or fish in America's national forests. The court's ruling affirms that these people -- and the organizations who represent them -- are harmed when the Forest Service approves logging policies without evaluating the impact on wildlife and recreation. The case arose out of a challenge by the Sierra Club and a coalition of environmental groups to the U.S. Forest Service’s decision to eliminate requirements that had been in place since 1990, that obliged the Forest Service to monitor the effects of its logging program on wildlife throughout the region. This case is a setback for the Bush administration, which has sought to limit the leverage that ordinary people have on management decisions for public lands while expanding the influence of commercial interests. The Sierra Club will continue its efforts to protect these invaluable forests in the lower courts.

May 1, 2003

The health of national forests in the southern United States is threatened by the expansion of destructive logging practices into prime habitat for threatened wildlife and plants. The Club recently added a new legal action to its landmark Southern National Forests litigation, successfully challenging 27 different timber sales in Georgia, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, and Florida because of the Administration’s failure to meet its own requirements to collect and analyze population data for endangered, threatened, and sensitive species of wildlife and plants. Instead of complying with the law, the Bush Administration is ignoring these requirements and proposing to clearcut with little regard for the health of forest wildlife and plants.

Details and Documents:

Environmentalists win round against U.S. Forest Service
September 6, 2006, by Bill Torpy Atlanta Journal Constitution

Circuit court finds standing to sue Forest Service
September 6, 2006, by the Associated Press Al.com