The Forest Service will have to once again revise its long-term management plan for two forests in North Carolina after a federal court threw out the agency’s latest update Tuesday.
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina sided with environmental groups in a lawsuit challenging the 2024 revision of the land management plan for the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests, saying the Forest Service relied on a flawed analysis of risks to endangered species.
At issue is the potential danger posed to four protected species of bats, spelled out in the biological opinion the Forest Service was required to conduct in cooperation with the Fish and Wildlife Service. An analysis by the wildlife agency found that the bats wouldn’t be jeopardized by the new forest plan, although the Forest Service had concluded that they could be adversely affected.
In agreeing with the groups — including the Southern Environmental Law Center, the Center for Biological Diversity and MountainTrue — the court found the Forest Service’s analysis lacking and “of almost no value” in pinpointing where suitable habit for the bats is to be found. The analysis requires an “environmental baseline” from which to assess future risks.
