ELR Citation: ELR 20682
No(s). 83-2225 (9th Cir. Jun 24, 1985)

The court upholds a permanent injunction against the Forest Service's plans to construct the last six miles of a logging road and to permit timber harvesting in the Blue Creek Unit of the Six Rivers National Forest in California because the projects would violate the Indian plaintiffs' First Amendment rights to free exercise of religion, the environment impact statements (EISs) for the projects inadequately address water quality impacts, and the project would violate the state's water quality standards for turbidity. The court first holds that the district court's finding that the proposed road and timbering would seriously interfere with the Indians' use of the pristine environment for religious cereomonies that are central and indispensable to their religion is sufficient to support its conclusion that these activities would violate their free exercise rights. The activity need not directly penalize religious beliefs or practices to be invalid. Further, the injunction would not require the Forest Service to maintain the area as a religious preserve for a single group in violation of the Establishment Clause. The Forest Service remains free to administer the area for all other designated purposes. Managing the area so as not to burden genuine Indian beliefs is not an endorsement of religion, but rather evidences a policy of neutrality. Finally, the court rules that the district court's finding of no compelling government interest is not clearly erroneous. Appellants' argument that Congress granted it broad discretion in managing the National Forests is irrelevant since the issues are constitutional, not statutory.

The court next reviews the adequacy of the EISs' discussion of water quality impacts on Blue Creek. The cort upholds the district court's conclusions that the EISs were inadequate in that they failed to discuss the risks of large increases in sediment loads from landslides, and failed to adequately discuss cumulative effects and mitigation measures.

The court next holds that the district court's finding that the projects would violate the FWPCA because neither the road construction nor the timber harvest plan meet the California water quality standards set out in the state's §208 plan is not clearly erroneous. The state standards were not superseded by the state's and the Environmental Protection Agency's acceptance of the Forest Service Best Management Practices (BMPs). Compliance with the BMPs, which are merely means for achieving state standards, does not ensure that these standards are met. The court, however, vacates that part of the injunction requiring the Forest Service to fulfill its trust responsibilities by completing studies of the effects of the proposed logging on the supply of anadromous fish in an Indian reservation. The court declines to assess the government's trust responsibilities because the affected tribe is not a party.

Finally, the court holds that the issue of whether the Forest Service was required under the National Environmental Policy Act and the Wilderness Act to evaluate the impact of the proposed actions on the wilderness potential of the Blue Creek Unit together with adjacent roadless areas was mooted by enactment of the California Wilderness Act. The court vacates the part of the injunction requiring preparation of an EIS evaluating the wilderness potential of this area.

[The lower court opinion appears at 13 ELR 20793.]

Counsel for Defendants-Appellants
Rodney B. Hamblin, Ass't U.S. Attorney
16th Floor, Fed. Bldg., 450 Golden Gate Ave., San Francisco CA 94102
(415) 556-5131

Jacques B. Gelin, Robert Klarquist
Land and Natural Resources Division
Department of Justice, Washington DC 20530
(202) 633-2762

Counsel for Plaintiffs-Appellees
Edna Walz, Deputy Attorney General
1515 K St., Suite 511, Sacramento CA 95814
(916) 324-5366

Marilyn B. Miles
California Indian Legal Services
P.O. Box 1228, 324 F St., Eureka CA 95501
(707) 443-8397

Michael R. Sherwood
Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, Inc.
2044 Filmore St., San Francisco CA 94115
(415) 567-6100

Before: Ben C. Duniway, William C. Canby Jr., and Robert R. Beezer, Circuit Judges.