Hundreds of wild places. Millions of roadless acres. One rule protects them all

For twenty-five years, a single rule has kept 44.5 million acres of America's wildest national forest off-limits to new roads. Behind that rule sit the Tongass and Chugach in Alaska, the headwaters of 354 municipal watersheds, habitat for more than 1,600 threatened and endangered species, and roughly thirty percent of the entire National Forest System. On June 23, 2025, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins announced plans to undo it all in the service of exploitation.

The rule survived a quarter century for one reason: the record. Its 2001 enactment drew more than 1.6 million public comments — still the most for any federal rule in U.S. history. In 2025, the public responded to the Notice of Intent. Roughly 600,000 comments came in; a roadless.org analysis found more than 99.8% opposed rescission. A Pew survey (Feb 2026) measured 76% voter support for keeping the rule — bipartisan, across every region of the country.

The agency is proposing rescission anyway. What it is legally required to answer is not opposition as sentiment but rather substantive opposition on the record — comments that name the studies, cite the watersheds, the species, the fire data, and engage the agency's stated rationale on its own terms. That record is now filed. We keep analysing it comment by comment, and we will hold the Final EIS to it. Comment Analysis →

The Draft EIS was filed on August 18, 2026, and its Chosen Alternative is full rescission. The public comment period closed on October 6, 2026: more than 375,000 comments, over 99% opposed. The agency has been clear it will not change its conclusion absent pressure from the public and Congress. Ask your delegation to cosponsor the Roadless Area Conservation Act (H.R. 3930 / S. 2042), which would write the rule into federal law so no administration could repeal it by regulation again. Contact your representative in Congress →