Sierra Club v. Lyng (I)

Under the Secretary of Agriculture's (defendant) direction, the Forest Service implemented a Southern Pine Beetle program involving extensive cutting and chemical spraying within wilderness areas across several southern states, aimed at protecting commercial timber and private property outside those wilderness areas; the Sierra Club and Wilderness Society (plaintiffs) challenged the program, arguing 'necessary' under the Wilderness Act's exception provision meant 'effective,' and that the program was ineffective and unnecessarily harmed protected wilderness. The Secretary presented little evidence about the beetle's ability to spread beyond wilderness boundaries or whether adjacent-land infestations could be controlled without wilderness intrusion, and the plaintiffs moved for summary judgment.