groups say Oregon logging project endangers northern spotted owl

Monique Merrill

MEDFORD, Ore. (CN) — A southwest Oregon logging project involving the timber harvest of more than 8,000 acres will cause “irreversible harm” to the northern spotted owls and other unique ecological resources, a trio of environmental groups claim in a new lawsuit .

The Bureau of Land Management’s Last Chance Forest Management Project calls for the commercial thinning, timber harvest and hazardous fuels reduction across nearly 57,000 acres within three southwestern counties in Oregon

However, the federal agency, as well as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, fell short of properly analyzing the effect on the northern spotted owl, according to the environmental groups — Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center, Oregon Wild and Cascadia Wildlands.

“The BLM doesn’t care abou