Forest Service Lifts Fuelwood Ban on New Mexico Forests After Judge Modifies Ruling

The U.S. Forest Service lifted the suspension of sales of fuelwood permits to collect firewood in New Mexico’s five national forests Tuesday after a U.S. District Judge in Arizona modified his original order banning all timber management in the state. The legal dispute centered on protecting a species of spotted owl, which had stopped all timber management — including fuelwood collection — which is critical to many families who use wood to heat their homes and for tribal activities. Other timber management activities, such as timber sales, forest thinning and prescribed burns, were excluded from the judge’s new ruling. The five New Mexico forests that were impacted by the ban were Carson National Forest, Cibola National Forest, Gila National Forest and Santa Fe National Forest...MORE

The politicians are very pleased with themselves:

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said she was “extremely grateful for the court’s quick action in modifying what would have been a devastating situation for so many New Mexicans who rely on these permits throughout the winter months.” “I know this is a relief to families across our state. I want to thank our Congressional Delegation, federal partners and our state Forestry Division for using their platforms to advocate for a fix and for immediately doing the work of identifying potential contingency plans,” the governor said in a statement. “When we pull together in the same direction, when New Mexican families’ best interests come first, we can always find solutions and steer clear of harmful unintended consequences,” Lujan Grisham said.

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New Mexico’s U.S. Congressional Delegation had called on the U.S. Forest Service to immediately resolve the issue. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, and Reps. Ben Ray Luján, Deb Haaland and Xochitl Torres Small wrote to U.S. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen last Friday. “We strongly encourage the Forest Service and other parties to the lawsuit to work quickly to respond to the ruling and resolve a variety of issues, including, but not limited to, traditional firewood gathering, tribal cultural activities, and forest restoration and fire mitigation projects,” the lawmakers wrote. “We likewise strongly urge the Forest Service to undertake the action necessary to comply with the Endangered Species Act to allow the resumption of forest activities and minimize impacts to traditional uses and projects that improve the long-term health of the forest.”

From the Albuquerque Journal: 

“We are pleased with this modification, which highlights the fact that we all want to do right by the communities we serve and reduce unnecessary burdens on communities that depend on the national forests for their sustenance,” Cal Joyner, Southwest regional forester, said in a news release. “I want to assure you that we are committed to continuing our work to protect wildlife and wildlife habitat from catastrophic wildfire, and we thank you for your ongoing support, understanding and patience.”

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WildEarth Guardians Executive Director John Horning said the modified order allows wood gatherers who sell pickup truckloads of firewood to resume their enterprises under personal use permits. He said larger-scale commercial wood gathering permits, which he said are typically used when the Forest Service wants to clear areas as part of timber management, remain on hold. Other timber management activities, including commercial timber sales, hazardous fuels reduction, forest thinning and prescribed burns to prevent wildfires, are still suspended under the order. Horning continued to blame the Forest Service for creating what he said was “an unnecessary panic.” He said the Forest Service didn’t have to go as far as suspending firewood permit sales. “We are grateful that the judge granted our request (to modify the original order),” Horning said in a news release. “As soon as the injunction was issued, we engaged the Forest Service to discuss how the injunction would be implemented without causing an interruption in this season’s fuel wood gathering. The Forest Service refused to speak with us, and instead chose to create an unnecessary panic. Had the agency consulted with us instead of manufacturing a crisis, all this unnecessary conflict and anxiety could have been avoided.”

---To begin with, cutting firewood on a national forest is not all that simple a process. As an example, see the 48 page Gila National Forest 2019 Firewood Guide

---I'm relatively sure the Forest Service consulted with their general counsel, who provided their interpretation of the original court order, and most likely advised that any modification would require action by the judge, not consultation with WildEarth Guardians.

---Horning says the modification "allows wood gatherers who sell pickup truckloads of firewood to resume their enterprises under personal use permits." I hope he is right, but I'm not so sure. On the national FS website for Tree Cutting, the second guideline states, "Wood or Christmas trees cannot be sold." Personal use permit holders can have designated cutters, and perhaps those cutters are selling their labor to the permit holders, not the wood.  I have limited knowledge in this area, but it appears a personal use permit may not allow you to "sell pickup truckloads of firewood" as an enterprise.

---I have the sneaking suspicion that the quick work by the enviros had more to do with satisfying the "off-the-grid", greenie types than concern for the average firewood harvester.

---While being touted as a great victory, none of this addresses the biggest threat to the public and the owl:  wildfire. Many thousands of acres in this region are rated as a high or very high fire risk. The Governor doesn't mention wildfire, and Joyner only mentions it in relation to protecting "wildlife and wildlife habitat from catastrophic wildfire." At least the NM Congressional Delegation, in their letter, refer to resolving "forest restoration and fire mitigation projects."

---However, the delegation also says, “We likewise strongly urge the Forest Service to undertake the action necessary to comply with the Endangered Species Act...". There is no mention of disagreeing with the judge's interpretation of the act, and no mention of amending the act to prevent similar decisions in the future. One can only assume, then, the delegation is in agreement with the decision that has halted all fire mitigation actions for the foreseeable future.

---I did get a kick out of the Governor's statement this demonstrated the good that can happen, "When we pull together in the same direction". I mean, is it possible to pull together in opposite directions? No matter, she has made it clear that as long as she is Governor, whenever we pull together, it must be in the same direction. Pulling together in opposite directions is completely verboten.