Supporters of the Roadless Rule gathered in April in Kake, AK. Photo by Aaron Minks.
A little more than a year ago, we were shocked to hear that the federal administration was planning to erase a 25 year old policy that protected 45 million acres of some of our most wild, intact, mature forest across our National Forest lands. We are immensely thankful for our supporter network who contributed to the collective 1 million comments that spoke up for the importance of these protections. OGFN worked with more than 100 other organizations in the Roadless Defense Network, a collaborative aimed at generating public engagement in the open comment period this summer.
A little background on the Roadless Rule
The “Roadless Rule” was established in 2001 with overwhelming public support. The rule protects in total 58 million acres of national forest land from most road construction and commercial logging activities. Over 9 million acres of old-growth forests are found in these “Inventoried Roadless Areas” established by the original Rule. These Roadless Areas are essential to many existing and future old-growth forests, clean drinking water, wildlife habitat, biodiversity, and the ecological connectivity that allow forests to thrive.
How we worked to protect these forests
OGFN staff worked to engage the public in writing and submitting meaningful comments to the Forest Service in local outdoor shops such as Patagonia, at trailheads and forest events, through Webinars, and even through a “Roadless Trivia” night that made learning about these special places fun and interactive.
A recent analysis of the comments posted on the Forest Service’s online docket found that 99.1% opposed the proposed rescission. Very few supported removing the policy and they were primarily tied to extraction industries. Thank you for helping contribute to the 1 million comments and especially for highlighting old-growth forests in your comments!
Keep an eye out for more updates from OGFN on the Roadless Rule as the proposals continue to take shape.
