Idaho Sporting Congress, Inc. v. United States Forest Service, and Intermountain Forest Industry Association, Intervenor-Appellee

The Idaho Sporting Congress (“ISC”) appeals from the district court’s dismissal of various claims and its grant of summary judgment in favor of the United States Forest Service (“Forest Service”) in ISC’s action seeking declaratory and injunctive relief with respect to three forest projects and seven associated timber sales. ISC alleged that the Forest Service had violated the Rescis-sions Act, the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. § 701 et seq., (“APA”), a Presidential directive and an interagency Memorandum of Agreement concerning implementation of the Rescissions Act, and the public trust doctrine.

ISC argues that the district court erred by: 1) dismissing all the claims brought under the APA; 2) concluding that the Forest Service had not violated any Presidential directive; 3) concluding that the Forest Service had not violated the public trust doctrine; and 4) concluding that the Forest Service’s decisions with respect to the sales properly challenged under the Rescissions Act were not arbitrary or capricious. We affirm.

FACTS AND PRIOR PROCEEDINGS

In 1994, a series of unprecedented wildfires burned hundreds of thousands of acres of forestland in Idaho and Montana.…