Headwaters Inc. v. U.S. Forest Service

I. Background

On May 13, 1999, six environmental groups and two individ- uals1 (“American Lands plaintiffs”) filed suit against the For- est Service challenging various timber sales, including the Beaver-Newt and Silver Fork timber sales. American Lands Alliance v. Williams, No. 99-697-AA (D. Or. 1999). The plaintiffs filed an amended complaint on October 26, 1999, 1 The named plaintiffs were: American Lands Alliance, League of Wil- derness Defenders, Oregon Wildlife Federation, Santiam Watershed Guardians, Friends of Breitenbush Cascades, Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center, Gregory J. Dyson, and John Rancher. 2126 HEADWATERS INC. v. U.S. FOREST SERVICE which advanced nine claims for relief under the National For- est Management Act (NFMA), 16 U.S.C. §§ 1600-1687, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321-4370, and the Administrative Procedures Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. §§ 701-706, challenging nineteen United States For- est Service logging programs in the Willamette, Mt. Hood, Rogue River, and Siskiyou National Forests. The complaint sought declaratory and injunctive relief requiring the Forest Service to complete an environmental impact statement under…