Big groups
drop
appeal
Eleven environmental
groups, including the Wilderness Society and National Audubon
Society, have decided not to appeal a recent federal court decision
upholding President Clinton’s Pacific Northwest forest plan, known
as Option Nine. While the groups agree the plan fails to protect
and restore the heavily logged ecosystem, they say they’ll focus on
enforcement. Todd True, a lawyer for the groups, declined to
discuss what specific factors contributed to the decision. Only
three smaller environmental groups and one from the timber industry
say they will challenge Judge William Dwyer’s decision. Tim
Hermach, whose Native Forest Council intends to appeal the plan,
calls the decision by major environmental organizations “an
unconscionable capitulation” to the timber industry. He says the
groups are afraid of further angering Congress or appearing too
stubborn. The forest plan includes a reduced yearly harvest of 1
billion board-feet of timber from forests containing spotted owls,
$1.2 billion to fund alternative industries in the area, no-logging
zones around vulnerable habitats, and an acceleration of salvage
cuts. – Elizabeth Manning
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Big groups drop appeal.
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