ALBUQUERQUE – New Mexico’s congressional delegation wants the U.S. Forest Service to quickly address concerns about a threatened owl and to allow firewood gathering and other activities to resume on six Southwest forests.
The agency has suspended timber sales, thinning projects, prescribed burns and the sale of firewood permits on five New Mexico forests and one in Arizona.
The decision stems from a recent court order in which environmentalists accused the federal government of failing to track Mexican spotted owls.
The Forest Service said it can’t interpret the order as it sees fit. But the agency said it supports excluding firewood permits from the activities that have been put on hold.
A pending motion would modify the court order to exclude firewood cutting and gathering for personal use.
