Injunction blocks Oregon timber sale

A lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club environmental lobby group has resulted in the completion of two timber sales and controlled burning operations being blocked in the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest in Oregon, USA.

The lawsuit challenged the US Forest Service's 2003 policy that exempted certain logging and burning projects from appeal.

But it seems that the Sierra Club action is a bit late in the day. A timber sales officer for the Wallowa-Whitman forest said that loggers had already completed about 60% of the cut for one of the blocked sales, and about half for the second. He added that the burning operation was already 80% complete and that the remainder of the work was not necessary for it to "achieve its goals".