The Reyes Peak (aka Pine Mountain) Forest Health Project on Los Padres National Forest’s Ojai and Mt. Pinos Ranger Districts was cleared to proceed on July 19 after U.S. District Court Judge John Walter ruled against lawsuits brought by Los Padres ForestWatch and other parties.
The court affirmed that the proposed thinning and fuels reduction work is consistent with law and Forest Service regulation and issued a decision in favor of the Forest.
“We are in a wildfire crisis and must take immediate action to protect our forests in Southern California,” said Los Padres Forest Supervisor Chris Stubbs. “Let me be clear – this is not a commercial logging project. We are trying to save the remaining trees on Reyes Peak from the devastating effects of a stand-replacing wildfire.”
To the contrary “We believe this ruling is incorrect and are working with our legal team to determine next steps,” said Jeff Kuyper, Executive Director of Los Padres ForestWatch. “We will explore all of our options for protecting Pine Mountain from a misguided and potentially damaging project.”
ForestWatch notes that “the ruling comes nearly two years after the project was approved despite the opposition of Indigenous groups, conservation organizations, scientists, businesses, local governments, and members of the public who submitted a collective 16,000 comments (claiming ‘over 99% of the comments opposed the project’) to the Forest Service.”
Other plaintiffs include Keep Sespe Wild Committee, Earth Island Institute, and American Alpine Club, collectively represented by the Environmental Defense Center and the Center for Biological Diversity, which also represented CA Chaparral Institute, and Patagonia Works.
According to the Los Padres Forest Service, its plan will protect an area that is at risk due to overstocking and the devastating impacts of disease and insect infestation over the next 15 years. The primary goal of the project is to reduce tree densities and promote forest resilience to insects and disease, persistent drought, and wildfire.
To address these threats, professional Forest managers will selectively thin specific areas across 755 acres that extend along Pine Mountain between state Highway 33 and Reyes Peak in Ventura County.
A more detailed list of pros and cons are on the respective websites: https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/lpnf and https://lpfw.org/
For those who want to read the project’s details: https://tinyurl.com/LPForestproject