UTAH – Approved last year, the Ashley National Forest Aspen Restoration Project aims to improve aspen health in the forest by making sure there’s an even distribution of ages. The Forest Service says Ashley aspens skew older right now, which makes the population as a whole more vulnerable to catastrophic fires or other disasters. Both logging and planting are among the tools the Forest Service authorized itself to use to restore younger trees. But four environmental advocacy organizations say “restoration” is a misnomer. “Their idea of ‘restore’ is to cut down aspen trees in roadless areas,” Mike Garrity, executive director at the Alliance for the Wild Rockies (AWR), said. He said his organization has sued the Forest Service more than anyone else. AWR sued the Forest Service together with the Center for Biological Diversity, Native Ecosystems Council and Yellowstone to Uintas Council in federal court April 24.