Short-term agreement filed in Cowles Bog tree lawsuit
Post-Tribune staff report January 18, 2013 11:48PM
Updated: February 20, 2013 6:15AM
A stalemate has been called in a lawsuit trying to stop the clearing of 3,400 trees in Cowles Bog, removing the urgency of the case and allowing the two sides to prepare arguments.
The temporary agreement between the National Park Service and the Coalition to Protect Cowles Bog Area allows the park service to continue clearing trees except in a designated area unspecified in the court documents.
The park services claims it wishes to return the bog, located within the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, to its original state. The coalition claims the park service used fake information to decide the trees, located south of Dune Acres and north of U.S. 12, were not originally part of the bog. They add that removing them would harm Dune Acres residents and the environment.
Oral arguments for both parties are scheduled for Feb. 21 in U.S. District Court in Hammond.
