Center for Sustainable Economy v. Washington State Department of Natural Resources

The Washington Superior Court found that the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) failed to conduct an adequate review of the climate change impacts of a timber sale and therefore clearly erred when it issued a Determination of Nonsignificance under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). The court found that DNR’s rationale that the timber sale would result in only minor carbon dioxide emissions because carbon was sequestered “to a certain (unknown) degree on all DNR-managed lands” was unjustified. The court also found that conclusions and data in the Washington Forest Ecosystem Carbon Inventory did not support DNR’s claim that its managed lands capture “far more” carbon than they release. The court concluded that SEPA required DNR to assess specific climate change impacts of the individual sale. In addition, the court found that DNR did not conduct the required alternatives analysis. The court said that alternatives that could be studied included employing variable density thinning techniques, potentially earning revenues from carbon payments under Washington’s carbon market, or earning revenue by creating opportunities for scientific research or sustainable foraging.