Ark. Federal Judge Rejects Bid for Injunction Against Drilling in National Forest

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - A U.S. district judge has denied the preliminary injunction sought by an environmental group that is seeking a moratorium on the issuance of conventional or hydraulic gas drilling permits in the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests. Ozark Society v. U.S. Forest Service, et al., No. 4:11-cv-00782 SWW (E.D. Ark.).

Judge Susan Webber Wright of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas concluded March 23 that while the issues being litigated will impact the public, the Ozark Society failed to show a likelihood that it will succeed on the merits or that there is a …