“I oppose rescinding the Roadless Rule without clear safeguards as this could expose mature and old-growth…”

I oppose rescinding the Roadless Rule without clear safeguards as this could expose mature and old-growth forests to unnecessary commercial harvesting and permanent road construction. Before changing the rule, I respectfully ask the Forest Service to establish enforceable protections for existing old-growth trees and ecologically significant mature forests. Any exceptions should allow legitimate wildfire prevention, public safety and ecological restoration while preventing those exceptions from becoming a pathway for unnecessary commercial removal of irreplaceable old trees. These forests took centuries to develop and cannot simply be replaced by planting new trees. Please preserve responsible forest-management tools while adding clear protections for the mature and old-growth forests we cannot replace within our lifetimes.