A Eugene-based environmental group has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Forest Service over the practice of dropping flame retardants from the air to combat wildfires.
An employee of the Forest Service for Environmental Ethics claims the agency is violating the Clean Water Act with the unauthorized release of flame retardants into waterways.
Andy Stahl is the executive director of the organization. He questions the effectiveness of airdropping flame retardants to contain wildfires.
“We lose pilots every year, and that trade-off may make sense,” Stahl said. “If it saves a community or a home it might be worth killing a pilot, if it saves a forest or a community or a home it might be worth killing a fish and polluting the water. means it’s not.”
This is the third lawsuit filed by the same group against the agency concerning airborne flame retardants.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service said the agency does not comment on pending or ongoing lawsuits.
Stahl spoke to “Think Out Loud” host Dave Miller about the complaint.
Copyright 2022 Oregon Public Broadcasting. For more information, visit Oregon Public Broadcasting.
