For Immediate Release
Contact: Gia Neswald (802) 585-1608; Priscilla Lynch (413) 522-5224; Glen Ayers at (413) 834-5273.
On Tuesday, January 7th, at 2:00 pm twenty-nine co-plaintiffs who have sued the MA Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) will attend a hearing before Superior Court Associate Justice Jane E. Mulqueen to oppose the State Attorney General’s motion to dismiss their law suit. Filed in August of 2019, the suit claims that MA DCR is violating several state laws and numerous regulations meant to protect the environment.
Oral arguments as to why the law suit should not be dismissed will be presented by the plaintiffs at the Franklin County Courthouse at 43 Hope Street in Greenfield. According to Plaintiff Priscilla Lynch, “This lawsuit should not be dismissed because of the critical role that intact forests play in addressing the Climate Emergency. DCR must be held accountable for violating the public trust and our 29 co-plaintiffs deserve their Day in Court.”
The suit originated over the commercial logging that was conducted on public land in Wendell State Forest. Despite the fact that the logging has been completed in Wendell, the law suit continues in order to address the underlying issues raised in the law suit which represent egregious abuse of authority on the part of MA DCR.
Says plaintiff Gia Neswald, “DCR has to be forced to follow existing laws, regulations, and policies meant to protect forests, and we are asking this Court to conduct a review of the abusive commercial logging program occurring on our public lands.” Plaintiff Glen Ayers adds that, “It is hoped that the Court considers carefully the issues raised in this case and helps resolve this dispute, because the underlying issues are not going away even if this case is dismissed. When 17 citizens, this strongly indicates there must be something very wrong that requires judicial review.
The plaintiffs request that the public attend the hearing in support of their law suit.