Save the Yaak Committee, Donn Vance v. J.R. Block, Secretary of Agriculture R. Max Peterson, Chief, Forest Service Thomas Costin, Region I Forester

The Save the Yaak Committee and Donn Vance (appellants) are appealing a district court decision denying their motion for summary judgment and request for injunc-tive relief, and granting the defendants’ (appellees) cross-motion for summary judgment.

I

FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS BELOW

The Yaak River Road (the Road), extends approximately seventy miles from U.S. Highway 2, west of Libby, Montana, to its junction with Montana Highway 37 and U.S. Highway 93 near Eureka, Montana. The Road winds through the Yaak and Eureka Range Districts of the Kootenai National Forest, located in Lincoln County, Montana.

The mountain pine beetle has infested the extensive lodgepole pine stands located in the Upper Yaak Valley and portions of the Eureka district. The Forest Service has accelerated the harvest of these trees to salvage as many as possible. Over the next 20 years, the Forest Service estimates harvesting 175 million board feet on the Yaak and 54 million board feet on the Eureka tributary to the Road.

In the late 1960’s, the Forest Service began reconstructing the Yaak River Road in five separate sections. Although environmental assessments (EA’s) were prepared for four of the five…