5—Cold Mountain Cold Rivers Complaint
educational, religious, and recreational interests of Plaintiff and its staff and members have been,
and continue to be, adversely affected by implementation of the Defendants’ bison management
activities, including the hazing, capture, and slaughter of bison and the disruption of other wildlife
The preceding paragraphs are realleged as if set forth in full herein.
On November 15, 1998, as part of CMCR and TECI’s public comments on
the U.S. Forest Service’s Categorical Exclusion of the Gallatin National Forest Plan for
issuing the MDOL a Special Use Permit to install and operate a bison capture facility and
conduct bison hazing activities, the organizations submitted video tape of MDOL bison
hazing operations in the Horse Butte Area. The videotape documented MDOL helicopter
violations of the Eagle Closure Area that the Gallatin National Forest established by Special
Order No. 94-11-07-01 for the protection of bald eagles on the Gallatin National Forest.
On December 14, 1998, the Gallatin National Forest issued an
Environmental Analysis (EA) for the Horse Butte Bison Capture Facility. See
12/14/98 EA
and Appendix A (Biological Assessment) and Appendix B, Biological Evaluation.
On March 15, 1999, Plaintiffs The Ecology Center, Inc. and Cold
Mountain, Cold Rivers, Inc. appealed the EA decision to the Region One Forester. The
Appeal was denied on April 28, 1999.
In discussing alternatives considered for bison management, the EA states
under section “C” Features Common to All Alternatives and Mitigation,” that:
In conjunction with the location of the capture facility, and the Interim Bison
Management Procedures, the DOL and the Forest Service have agreed to a set of
requirements designed to reduce the adverse effects of hazing on bald eagles and
other resources. Among other provisions, the requirements prohibit the use of
helicopters for hazing. The requirements are contained in Appendix IV of the
Biological Assessment.
See EAat pp. 13-14 (emphasis added).
