Trump-era rule relaxing old-growth logging ban illegal, U.S. judge finds - Reuters

Trump-era rule relaxing old-growth logging ban illegal, U.S. judge finds | Reuters

Trump-era rule relaxing old-growth logging ban illegal, U.S. judge finds

REUTERS/Eric Johnson Acquire Licensing Rights

Sept 1 (Reuters) - A Trump-era rule change that allowed expanded logging of large trees on millions of acres of U.S. forest land in Oregon and Washington violated federal environmental laws, a federal judge has found.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Hallman in Pendleton, Oregon, on Thursday agreed with six environmental groups that had challenged the U.S. Forest Service's decision to relax rules prohibiting cutting down old-growth trees, saying the agency had not thoroughly analyzed how it would impact the environment.

Oregon Wild, WildEarth Guardians and other environmental groups that sued the agency over the change in 2022 have said it removed the only meaningful protections for old-growth forests - which absorb carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change, and bolster biodiversity - in the region.

The 2021 rule change eliminated a bright-line prohibition on cutting down trees that are larger than 21 inches in diameter across six national forests and millions of acres of federal land. It aimed to make it easier to remove large fire-prone trees that flourished during a century of robust federal fire suppression, while still protecting old trees that are more resistant to flames and disease, the government said.

Hallman said the agency violated the National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act, finding the impacts of the change are "highly uncertain" and warrant a more thorough environmental review than what was originally conducted. His recommendation to vacate the rule will now be submitted to U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken for a final decision.

The American Forest Resource Council, a timber industry trade group that intervened in the case to defend the rule, said in a statement Friday that the judge's recommendations will get in the way of proactive forest management to reduce wildfire risk.

The Forest Service didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. It had argued in a February 2023 court filing that the rule change was based on reasonable determinations that it would not have significant environmental impacts.

The case is Greater Hells Canyon et al. v. Wilkes et al., U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, case No. 2:22-cv-00859.

For the environmental groups: Oliver Stiefel and Meriel Darzen of the Crag Law Center

For the U.S. government: Tyler Alexander and Hayley Carpenter of the U.S. Department of Justice

For the intervenors: Aaron Bruner and Caroline Lobdell of the Western Resources Legal Center

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