A federal judge has stopped a major logging project in Montana’s grizzly bear country, ruling that federal agencies failed to prove their habitat calculations would actually protect the endangered animals. The decision marks the second time in a year Montana timber projects have been halted over the same scientific shortcoming.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen DeSoto issued a preliminary injunction Monday blocking the Greenhorn Vegetation Project until a lawsuit by four environmental groups is resolved. The Alliance of the Wild Rockies and its co-plaintiffs challenged the Forest Service’s reliance on a federal wildlife analysis that designated 10-acre patches as adequate “secure habitat” for grizzlies in the logging zone.
The 10-Acre Problem Courts Keep Finding
Judge DeSoto pointed to a 2025 ruling by a U.S. district judge who halted a different Montana logging project because the Forest Service couldn’t explain why 10 acres would be enough space for a grizzly bear to safely live and forage. “The same analytical gap appears in this matter,” DeSoto wrote in her Missoula courtroom opinion.
The judge found the environmental groups were likely to prove the Forest Service violated the Endangered Species Act by accepting the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s habitat determination without adequate scientific backing. Under federal law, agencies must use “the best available science” when evaluating threats to protected species.
What Happens to the Timber Project Now
The injunction freezes all logging activity in the Greenhorn project area until the underlying lawsuit is decided on its merits. That could take months or longer, depending on whether the government appeals or attempts to produce new scientific analysis addressing the court’s concerns.
For the Forest Service, the ruling creates a pattern problem. Two separate judges have now found the same 10-acre habitat metric insufficient within a year, suggesting the agency may need to fundamentally rework its approach to grizzly bear protection in Montana timber country. The alternative is watching project after project get blocked by courts that find the math doesn’t add up.
The case tests whether federal agencies can repeatedly use the same habitat calculations after courts have questioned their scientific foundation, or whether judges will demand fresh analysis that stands up to scrutiny.
Key Points
- Judge blocked Montana logging project, finding federal agencies failed to scientifically justify 10-acre grizzly habitat standard
- Second Montana timber project halted in a year over identical habitat calculation problems
- Forest Service may need new approach after courts repeatedly reject same bear protection metrics
https://www.courthousenews.com/judge-halts-montana-logging-project-over-concerns-for-grizzly-bear-habitat/ – July 28, 2026
