A U.S. District Court decision found that the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service erred on the Knotty Pine logging project ruling. The case sits inside the Cabinet‑Yaak grizzly recovery zone in northwest Montana. The order calls for renewed analyses consistent with the Kootenai National Forest land management plan and its access amendment.
Related reading on rules and land management: legal habitat definitions, ESA rule changes, and public land pressures.
“This decision is a critical win for the Cabinet‑Yaak’s struggling grizzly bears… The court’s ruling sends a clear message that the government can’t ignore facts or the law when it comes to protecting grizzlies.”
“The court made clear that the agency can’t pretend those roads don’t exist, and that the science and the law both require real accountability for protecting grizzly bears.”
“This ruling affirms that the Forest Service must account for illegal road use, including on ‘zombie roads,’ which the agency pretends don’t exist until they come back to life for logging projects.”
“We’re grateful that our citizen oversight was successful in protecting Yaak grizzlies and other components of a healthy ecosystem, utilizing the best available science.”
Source Document
Read the announcement: Center for Biological Diversity press release.
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Grizzly monitoring and USGS budgets
Court‑ordered reviews for wildlife risk
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