Injunction sought to prevent Angora logging
Removing the charred trees from the Angora burn area next week may not happen.
Earth Island Institute’s John Muir Project and the Center for Biological Diversity on July 20 filed a request for an emergency injunction in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.
The conservation groups earlier this year had sued to stop the South Shore project, but lost in U.S. District Court earlier this month.
The U.S. Forest Service wants to get rid of the trees burned in the June 2007 fire that leveled 254 houses to prevent another catastrophic fire. The environmental groups say that work would destroy the habitat of the black-backed woodpecker.
— Lake Tahoe News staff report
And how much more will this cost us before the trees are finally removed?
The place is a eye sore reguardless of new homes,down with the old,flock the soil with new trees.
Kinda of a no brainer.
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-backed_Woodpecker/id
An uncommon woodpecker of the northern coniferous forests, the Black-backed Woodpecker prefers burned-over sites. It moves from place to place, following outbreaks of wood-boring beetles in recently burned habitats.
So I am guessing that this bird lives and thrives off the misfortune of others, kinda like the Earth Island Institute’s John Muir Project and the Center for Biological Diversity. My first question to them would be “is there any evidence or sightings (pictures) of these birds who are not actually native to this area? Just curious.
I would also like to ask “what is exactly considered recently burned habitats” Is there a timeline limit as the beetles can’t survive long in a dead tree.
Skibum it is related to beetles and the time ranges from 5-7 years. If trees continue to die after the fire. Some say 3-5. I found the research paper once and I can probably find it again. Interesting read.
I don’t think it is ‘costing’ the taxpayers money to remove the trees. Cost is offset by sales.
I will try and find it but I would think Earth Island Institute’s John Muir Project and the Center for Biological Diversity would have that information and will share it with us at their leisure in order to delay the project. Fyi, there is no money in the value of those trees other than biomass fuel which no one is buying anymore. The logger who gets the bid will be charging a per acre clearing cost. It’s no good for firewood as no one wants charcoal wood and the logs are not big enough to generate any money from the mills. The mills will take them but at little cost as most mills around here are closed anyway.
http://www.montanadiscoveryfoundation.org/Birds_and_Burns_overview.pdf
Interesting reading and study on the subject but pages 5-7 give the information as up to 20 years.
The nests per ha data on page 7 is interesting, fits the 5-7 year range well. I think the 20 year number included multiple species, all flying insectivores.
While we are on the subject of birds, I had my first up close encounter with a Pileated woodpecker 2 weeks ago. It flew 1 few meters over my head, I could hear it beat its wings before I even saw it.
And the Townsends Solitaire has been really active. They have a unique and complicated song, and are known as the Motzart of birds. I think I hear one now.
So the logger is paid per acre or pays per acre?
paid
those of us that rebuilt in the angora area did NOT anticipate fighting a beetle eating woodpecker that obviously is the victim here!! Never mind the rest of us who are a community based consumer. The ninth circuit-ARE YOU KIDDING ME? why don’t the plaintiffs in the suit buy us out, and frigging beetles can thrive.
Earth Island Institute’s John Muir Project and the Center for Biological Diversity obviously have nothing better to do. Unfortunately our tax dollars probably keep these groups feeding from one lawsuit to another. Sue’em Tony!
With all the major fires in California in the last 5 years, I can’t imagine that the beetles are wanting for a place to live or the woodpeckers are wanting for beetles. Cut the ugly, dangerous trees down now.
Any homeowner, hiker, or vehicle who is hurt or damaged by falling habitat trees across trails, roads, or property lines should immediately file suit against the Earth Island Institute and any other group who has stood in the way of the removal of these trees.
Right on, TFF. I don’t understand how these groups are able to constantly put up barricades to necessary progress, especially as you note, the fire danger (which we’ll all be paying for on our property taxes now) and the economy. Guess they keep the damn lawyers working!
They have the same rights as corporations. What is there to understand?
Also, substitute the ‘civil rights’ for ‘fire danger’ and the same thing can be said about churches and religion. Just because you don’t like them doesn’t mean they don’t deserve rights.
Think before type.
Conservation, they are corporations. Every tax exempt entity in the US is a corporation. So why wouldnt they have the rights of corporations?
The point is they can file suits with no consequence when they lose. Most western states have loser pays rules where the loser of a suit picks up the winners legal fees, that detail makes entities pick their cases carefully.
The strategy is not to win the case but to tie the work up in court to get past the new fiscal year when the money dries up. They dont have to win, they just have to stall.
Thank you John. That little change could make all the difference, couldn’t it?
That was my point John. Non 501c corporations do the exact same thing in the courts. Where to you think the 501c’s learned it from?
corporations do not sue the citizen, affecting their well being-lawyers do that-i.e. class actions, and putrid orgs like earth island, and the league to starve-i mean save lake tahoe.