August 9, 2005, Bakersfield Californian - AP, CA: Environmental group sues over California logging decision, by Don Thompson,

August 9, 2005, Bakersfield Californian - AP, CA: Environmental group sues over California logging decision, by Don Thompson,

SACRAMENTO (AP) - An environmental group is suing California wildlife regulators, alleging officials broke the law by giving a North Coast timber company the right to damage the habitats of two endangered species.

Pacific Lumber Co. gained permission under the 1999 Headwaters deal for certain logging activities that environmentalists said would harm populations of coho salmon and marbled murrelets, a seabird that nests in old growth redwoods.

A Humboldt County Superior Court judge revoked the permits in 2003, saying they violated the California Endangered Species Act. In February, the state Department of Fish and Game cleared the way for the company to log the disputed areas when it ruled that Pacific Lumber's conservation plan complied with state law.

The lawsuit filed Monday by the Center for Biological Diversity alleges the agency acted without proper review when it did so.

The center's conservation director, Peter Galvin, called the permit "an extinction plan for the marbled murrelet and coho salmon." He said the department "tried to sneak this decision through without involving the public."

The Department of Fish and Game earlier estimated that the company's plans to log 210,000 acres would kill as many as 340 marbled murrelets by destroying 10,000 acres of their nesting habitat. Streams where coho salmon spawn also would be harmed by erosion from logging, the agency found.

But the department now says the company is fully compensating for that loss, contrary to the judge's 2003 decision, according to the lawsuit.

The February decision was an administrative finding that a federally approved plan meets state standards, department spokesman Mike Wintemute said.

The Department of Fish and Game also is appealing the Humboldt County judge's decision. Meanwhile, it is continuing on the presumption that the company's conservation plan is valid, Wintemute said.

Pacific Lumber spokesman Chuck Center said the company was declining comment.

Under the Headwaters agreement, the state and federal governments bought 10,000 acres of old growth redwood groves from Pacific Lumber for $480 million. The deal included a habitat conservation plan that set standards for how the company would log its remaining acreage.