ELR Citation: 56 ELR 20067
No(s). 6:24-cv-01641-MTK (D. Or. May 14, 2026) (Kasubhai, J.)

A district court granted in part and denied in part environmental groups' motion for summary judgment in a challenge to BLM's approval of a logging project in western Oregon. The groups argued the project violated FLPMA and NEPA because BLM failed to adequately consider the presence of old-growth forests. The court found BLM failed to demonstrate compliance with binding resource management plan direction to retain trees greater than or equal to 40 inches in diameter and established prior to 1850, and failed to provide a "convincing statement of reasons" why the potential effects of the project were insignificant; but that the EA sufficiently tiered to the 2016 final EIS with regard to carbon storage and climate change and satisfied BLM's requirement to take a "hard look" at those environmental effects. It vacated the project EA, FONSI, and associated decision record, and remanded to BLM to comply with FLPMA and NEPA.