After the parties partially settled this case, the Forest Service still tried to move the remainder of Plaintiffs' case from the Northern District of California to the Eastern District of California. In a short but sweet Order, the Court denied this motion and retained the case. Now the parties finally can get to the merits of this case!
Forest Service grazing categorical exclusions
We are teaming with heavy-weight San Francisco law firm Keker & Van Nest in this litigation challenging hundreds of Forest Service grazing permit renewals on dozens of National Forests across the West. These permit renewals were done without any NEPA analysis, instead using "categorical exclusions" under an appropriations “rider” passed by Congress several years ago, which the Forest Service has consistently misapplied. We represent many client groups in this case, including Western Watersheds Project, Natural Resources Defense Council, Cal Trout, Center for Biological Diversity, Grand Canyon Trust, Oregon Natural Desert Association, Utah Environmental Council, and others.
After extended negotiations, the parties partially settled this case. The Forest Service agreed to withdraw a number of the challenged decisions and conduct the appropriate environmental analysis for them. In return, Plaintiffs agreed to drop the remaining challenged decisions that arose outside California. Now the parties are pursuing seven decisions from within California in this case and will be briefing summary judgment this spring.
As for the decisions Plaintiffs dropped from this case, several of the groups have filed a new case in Idaho challenging ten of those decisions from Idaho, Wyoming, and Utah. Look for Western Watersheds Project et al. v. U.S. Forest Service, case no. 10-612-REB for a description of that case!
Current Status:
Pending
Case Title and Number:
WWP v. Kempthorne, No. 08-cv-516-BLW (D. Idaho)
Date Filed:
03/05/2008
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