Judge says fire retardant drops are polluting streams but allows use to continue

By MATTHEW BROWN
Associated Press

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A judge has ruled that the U.S. Forest Service can keep using chemical retardant to fight wildfires, despite finding that the practice pollutes streams in western states in violation of federal law. The ruling Friday from U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen in Montana came after environmentalists sued the government for dropping the red slurry material into waterways hundreds of times over the past decade. Government officials say chemical fire retardant is sometimes crucial to slowing the advance of dangerous blazes. Wildfires across North America have grown bigger and more destructive over the past two decades.