Lawsuit to protect communities, Bald Eagles, and California Spotted Owls from logging project
in North Big Bear, San Bernardino National Forest, Southern CA
Joining forces with Friends of the Big Bear Valley and San Bernardino Valley Audubon Society, JMP filed suit after the San Bernardino National Forest in southern California signed a decision to implement a 13,000-acre intensive tree cutting project, mostly in remote wildlands distant from homes, and in sensitive Bald Eagle habitat.
Again, the Forest Service attempted to spin this as a community wildfire safety project, despite evidence submitted by JMP showing that the Forest Service's own scientists acknowledge that the last time they implemented a project like this on this national forest, a wildfire swept rapidly through it and burned down 199 homes; in contrast, projects that emphasize "home hardening" and defensible space pruning within 100 to 200 feet of homes have been highly successful in protecting homes and lives.
The Forest Service callously disregarded this evidence, stating that accounting for community safety is "beyond the scope" of the Forest Service's environmental analysis-in a project claiming to be all about community safety. The Forest Service also refused to conduct an environmental impact statement.
