Record $102M Settlement in California Forest Fire Case
A railroad company has settled with the government for a record $102 million in a case over a 2000 wildfire in a forest north of Sacramento, Calif., that was especially valuable because it was protected from logging. Over three weeks, it consumed 52,000 acres within the Lassen and Plumas national forests.
“The settlement announced today marks the most money the U.S. Forest Service has ever received in a lawsuit and was undergirded by a first-of-its-kind ruling by a federal judge,” reports the Los Angeles Times. In the ruling, U.S. District Judge Frank Damrell Jr. found that Union Pacific Railroad Co. was liable not only for firefighting and lost timber but damage to soil, young growth, wildlife, habitat, views and recreation use.
The fire was allegedly sparked by five railroad workers using power tools to repair a section of track without taking adequate safety precautions. However, Union Pacific did not admit liability in the settlement. Some 2,500 firefighters battled the blaze at a cost of roughly $22 million.
