From 1991 through 1995 the National Forest Service entered into fourteen timber contracts to Precision Pine & Timber Inc. in a national forest in Arizona. All of contracts were identical but one which omitted a clause entitled “Interruption or Delay of Operations” which gave power to the Forest Service to interrupt or delay operations to comply with a court order or issue of court. In 1993, the Mexican Spotted Owl was listed as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). As it was determined, Region 3, which the Forest Service had awarded the contracts, “might affect” the Mexican Spotted Owl. The Forest Service began by issuing an informal Land Resource Management Plan (LRMPs) to manage the resources of Region 3 with regard
