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Forest Service withdraws logging plans in Beachie Creek Fire area after environmentalist lawsuit

Fire smolders in the forest days after the Beachie Creek Fire tore through Santiam Canyon communities over Labor Day weekend 2020(Ron Cooper/Salem Reporter)

The U.S. Forest Service is going back to the drawing board on plans to reopen portions of Willamette National Forest affected by the 2020 Labor Day fires after a federal judge ordered the agency to halt logging in November.

The agency said Wednesday it would withdraw plans for a project to cut down fire-damaged and fire-killed trees along about 400 miles of road affected by the Beachie Creek, Lionshead and Holiday Farm fires.

Conservation groups Willamette Riverkeeper, Cascade Wildlands and Oregon Wild sued over the plan in August, saying many of the trees were on low-priority roads and posed little imminent risk. In November, a federal judge said the agency had overstretched its authority to move forward without an environmental review, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported, and ordered logging to stop.

Now, the Forest Service will craft a new plan for reopening the area.

“I have decided it is in the best interest of the public to limit the continued time and expense associated with ongoing litigation surrounding this project,” said Forest Supervisor Dave Warnack in a statement. “Our work to safely restore public access to areas burned in the 2020 Labor Day fires continues to be top priority. Upon withdrawal of this decision, my staff will conduct another review of the purpose and need of this project and will consider a new approach to addressing this important issue. We will re-engage with community partners and other interested parties toward solutions and opportunities to facilitate safely reopening fire affected areas.”

The agency said the affected roads would remain closed to the public until safety concerns are addressed.

-Rachel Alexander