“Our public lands are not for sale! I am writing today to express my strong opposition to the Trump…”

Our public lands are not for sale! I am writing today to express my strong opposition to the Trump administration’s proposal to rescind the 2001 Roadless Rule. This harmful proposal would open millions of acres of federal lands to massive roadbuilding, logging, or other extractive projects and sidestep critical environmental reviews and safeguards for endangered species. It ignores science-based forest management and would put public land and waterways at risk for human-caused impacts such as increased wildfires, species loss and water and air pollution. National forests and BLM lands provide critical habitat for wildlife, as well as old-growth forests that help fight climate change. These pristine lands help filter and preserve drinking water for millions of Americans and are critical in reducing carbon needed for a healthy and stable climate. As an older generation American, I learned when I was young that our public lands belong to all Americans—for these public lands are an important part of what makes the U.S. special. These lands should not be used to benefit extractive industries, corporate polluters or private interests. They should be held in trust for all Americans, for generations to come. And adding roads will not help manage or protect these areas as suggested by this proposal. Rather, it will make our lands more vulnerable to human-caused impacts. The public deserves an opportunity to have our voices heard. There should be an adequate public comment period before anything happens on our lands. So I am asking you now to protect our public lands by opposing this proposal to rescind the Roadless Rule.