Group files logging lawsuit MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - A group of environmentalists sued the U.S. Forest Service Thursday, claiming it is ignoring evidence forests generate more income when left alone than when logged. The groups, which include Friends of the Earth and Forest Guardians, accuse the Forest Service of violating federal law requiring it to consider the economic and social benefits of a standing forest before cutting the trees. The lawsuit is unusual as environmental groups normally claim economics should have no bearing in the forestry debate. But it plays into a new legal theory that asserts standing forests are worth more than the value of the timber sold and jobs created through logging. See full story <http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2557657238-634> Forest deal may be in jeopardy SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Two years of negotiations over the fate of an ancient redwood forest broke down Thursday when a lumber company accused the government of trying to put it out of business. Pacific Lumber Co. said an attempt to prevent it from cutting timber near waterways as part of a deal to spare the largest privately owned stand of ancient redwoods in the world was unacceptable. Pacific had agreed to sell 10,000 acres of land for $480 million to California and the federal government, which is trying to save groves of 1,500-year-old redwoods in the Headwaters Forest about 300 miles north of San Francisco. See full story <http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2557659638-22b> Return To Top <#TOP> | The Environment <#category18>
