WFLC requested the U.S. District Court judge, The Honorable Marsha Pechman, to issue a preliminary injunction preventing Weyerhaeuser from conducting any additional logging on approximately 50,000 acres of forest in Southwest Washington without first considering the habitat needs of the spotted owls remaining on those forests.  In addition, WFLC requested the Court to order Washington State DNR to stop approving logging permits that authorize logging around known owls state-wide, where the existing habitat is far-below what scientists believe is the bare minimum for owls to survive and reproduce.

The population of northern spotted owls in Washington is down approximately 50% in the past ten years.  According to official state records, only 218 exist today in the entire State.  Weyerhaeuser has logged about 44% of all the owl habitat remaining in SW Washington during the period between 1996-2004.

The four day hearing was dramatic in several ways.  Two former Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife employee testified that the State’s forest practice rules were authorizing DNR to approve permits that harmed owls.  Three independent scientists criticized the “science” that Weyerhaeuser was using to justify leaving only 500 acres behind for the owls that are barely surviving on its lands.  The hearing turned up evidence that United States Fish and Wildlife Service has known about Weyerhaeuser’s logging for the past few years, did nothing to stop it, and allowed Weyerhaeuser the opportunity to edit its warning letters.  And the hearing also revealed internal Weyerhaeuser memorandums stating the companies strategy of trying to defeat any ESA litigation while doing as little as possible to help owls.

Read the June 27, 2007, Seattle P-I editorial, "Bush Administration: Too cozy by half "

Read the June 23, 2007, Seattle P-I article, "Weyerhaeuser got to edit U.S. letter on logging, owls"

Read more about the case here.