ASHEVILLE, N.C.— The Southern Environmental Law Center, on behalf of the Center for Biological Diversity and MountainTrue, sued the U.S. Forest Service today after the agency refused to stop an unlawful logging operation in Pisgah National Forest’s Nolichucky River Gorge.

Crews recently began a salvage logging project along the Nolichucky River, a world-class whitewater paddling and hiking destination. The project targets old-growth forests along the river and threatens rare and endangered wildlife, including hellbenders, mussels and bats. The area is also designated as a North Carolina Natural Heritage Area.

“The Forest Service is breaking the law and the hearts of millions of Americans by illegally logging along the Nolichucky River,” said Will Harlan, Southeast director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Federal officials tried to sneak this project past the public, but the community is stepping up to save this beloved river and ancient forest. We’re going to court to make sure Pisgah, the river and its wildlife are protected.”

The Nolichucky River is the foundation of a thriving outdoor recreation economy worth $17 million annually. Hikers and paddlers flock to the gorge for its wild, ancient forests and pristine waters. Logging would pollute the river, jeopardize imperiled wildlife and scar the scenic gorge.

“The agency’s decision to plow ahead with this unlawful logging project shows a blatant disregard for its own forest plan, federal law and the communities that rely on these forests,” said Clara Derby, associate attorney at SELC. “Even worse, the agency did this behind closed doors without even notifying the public. The Forest Service can’t pick and choose when it wants to follow the law, so we’re taking them to court.”

Today’s lawsuit says the Forest Service ignored its own plan for the Nantahala-Pisgah forest when it approved the logging project, violating federal law. Under the plan, Flattop Mountain in the Nolichucky Gorge is supposed to be managed as a backcountry preserve to protect old-growth forest, and conducting salvage logging operations undermines that designation.

The Forest Service is required to notify the public about logging projects like this and must study its potential environmental harm. However, the agency is attempting to unlawfully sidestep these obligations under the guise of an emergency order, despite the fact the order expired long before this logging project was proposed and sold. The agency’s failure to publicly analyze the potential environmental harm from this project also violates federal law, today’s lawsuit said.

“The Forest Service has moved forward with a logging project that violates their own forest plan in one of the jewels of Pisgah National Forest. They are doing so under the guise of an expired emergency order while attempting to complete the project in secrecy, without performing their legal duty to inform the public, complete rare species surveys or consult with other agencies,” said Josh Kelly, resilient forests program director at MountainTrue. “We asked the Forest Service for specifics about the project, and they refused, while also providing false information. We feel we have no other recourse but to sue to protect the outstanding qualities of the Nolichucky Gorge.”

The conservation groups sent a letter to the Forest Service last week, notifying the agency that this logging project violated several federal laws. However, the Forest Service failed to meaningfully respond.

Today’s lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. The groups are asking the court to immediately halt the logging operation and prevent additional logging at the site until the Forest Service complies with federal law, including completing an environmental analysis and allowing public comment.