Gould

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER RE: CROSS-MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT .

Plaintiffs Center for Biological Diversity and Earth Island Institute brought this action against defendants Dean Gould, the Sierra National Forest Supervisor, and the United States Forest Service (“Forest Service”), alleging that defendants violated the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) and the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”) in approving the French Fire Recovery and Reforestation Project (“French Fire Project”). Sierra Forest Products intervened as a defendant. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56, plaintiffs and defendants both move for summary judgment.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

Plaintiff Center for Biological Diversity is a non-profit corporation involved in species and habitat protection issues throughout North America. (Compl. ¶ 10.) Plaintiff Earth Island Institute is a non-profit organization headquartered in Berkeley, California whose purpose is to develop and support projects that counteract threats to biological and cultural diversity. (Id. ¶ 12.) One of Earth Island Institute’s projects, the John Muir Project, was formed to protect all public forestlands from commercial…