ELR Citation: 50 ELR 20083
No(s). 19-35665 (9th Cir. Apr 3, 2020)

In an unpublished opinion, the Ninth Circuit held that the U.S. Forest Service's decision not to prepare an EIS for a tree-thinning project in Mount Hood National Forest was arbitrary and capricious. A district court concluded that the Service's decision was lawful and thus granted summary judgment in favor of the Service. On appeal, the court found that because the project was "highly controversial" and uncertain and because the Service failed to identify and meaningfully analyze the project's cumulative impacts, the Service's decision not to prepare an EIS was arbitrary and capricious. It therefore reversed the district court's ruling and remanded with instructions to remand to the Forest Service for preparation of an EIS.