After more than a decade of public engagement, partnerships, and planning, the U.S. Forest Service had the opportunity to get it right. Instead, on March 20, 2023, they finalized a Forest Management Plan for the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests that takes us backward — threatening some of the most beloved and biologically diverse landscapes in Western North Carolina.

That’s why today, MountainTrue is taking legal action.

We are joining with our partners to sue the Forest Service over its deeply flawed Forest Plan — a plan that undermines public trust, sacrifices rare species habitat and existing old-growth forests, and sets a dangerous precedent for forest management across the Southern Appalachians.

What’s At Stake

The Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests are home to some of the most extraordinary ecosystems in the eastern United States — ancient trees, roadless backcountry, rare plants and animals, and cold mountain streams that feed communities and support thriving recreation and tourism economies.

Yet under the new Forest Plan, more than 600,000 acres — over half the national forest lands in WNC — are open to commercial logging, including:

• 100,000 acres of Natural Heritage Areas, underdeveloped areas with backcountry character, and rare species habitat,
• Steep slopes that were previously off-limits to ground-based logging — and where many of our last stands of old-growth still exist, and
• Existing old-growth forest, which the agency now claims the authority to cut without even surveying to know what’s at stake or notifying the public of its plans.

The Forest Service claims that it has actually increased protection for old growth in a ‘designated old-growth network.’ But this network was designed to include forests, including much younger forests, that are legally or practically off limits to logging already. Meanwhile, existing old growth convenient for loggers was deliberately left out of the network. This allows younger forests to be counted as old-growth simply because they might eventually reach that status — as long as it’s convenient for future logging.

Our Position Is Clear

Let’s be clear: MountainTrue is not against logging. Responsible timber harvests are an important part of our regional economy and can play a role in supporting wildlife habitat — especially when done in the right places.

What we are fighting against is a plan that permits logging in the wrong places: pristine backcountry, rare species habitat, and mature and old-growth forests that take centuries to replace. The new plan aims to dramatically increase the amount of logging from what occurred under the previous plan, but the volume of logging isn’t the real issue — location matters far more.

The Forest Service had the benefit of detailed mapping, science-based recommendations, and a collaborative proposal from the Nantahala-Pisgah Forest Partnership — a coalition that includes conservationists, local businesses, timber interests, and recreation advocates. Instead, the agency ignored the consensus and pushed through a plan that prioritizes flexibility for logging over long-term forest health and public trust.

We Tried Every Other Avenue

MountainTrue participated in every phase of this process: submitting expert comments, proposing collaborative solutions, meeting with Forest Service officials, and filing formal objections. We offered science, consensus, and good-faith alternatives. When harmful projects started rolling out under the new plan, we pointed out how those harms could be traced directly back to the plan. And we called for an amendment to the plan to fix some of its most egregious errors. We were ignored.

When an agency ignores its own data, rejects overwhelming public input, writes off years of coalition-building, and violates the law — that’s when we go to court.

What Happens Now

The lawsuit will challenge the Forest Plan’s failure to protect old-growth forests, underdeveloped areas with backcountry character, and sensitive habitats. We will show that the Forest Service violated core environmental laws and disregarded science and public input in its decision-making.

But this lawsuit is about more than one plan. It’s about demanding a future for our national forests where:

• Old-growth stands are protected, not put on the chopping block,
• Rare species and wild places are prioritized,
• Collaboration and science are taken seriously, and
• Public lands serve the public good, not short-term interests.

The Fight for Our Forests Isn’t Over

MountainTrue has always believed that the forests of Western North Carolina are worth fighting for — and we’re backing that belief in court. But we’re also continuing our work in the field, in the halls of government, and in communities throughout the region to build a better vision for public lands.

We’ll keep showing up. We’ll keep speaking out. And we’ll keep defending the places we all love.

You can support this work by staying informed, spreading the word, and donating to help cover the costs of legal action and advocacy.