“The Roadless Rule does not prevent all logging or new road development in designated Roadless areas. It simply…”

The Roadless Rule does not prevent all logging or new road development in designated Roadless areas. It simply requires some additional assessment and process to ensure the sensitive natural resources protected within them receive extra consideration to avoid reckless and short-sighted decisions made on behalf of commercial interests. Roadless areas in Apalachicola National Forest support some finest remaining stands of old growth longleaf pine, botanically unique pitcher plant savannas that are extraordinarily sensitive to even sight changes in hydrology, and the largest remaining population of the threatened Red-cockaded woodpecker. Roadless areas in Ocala National Forest help protect the largest sand pine scrub ecosystem in the world, the largest remaining population of the threatened Florida scrub jay and encompass much of the springshed of Alexander Springs – one of the only pristine springs remaining in Florida. The unaltered wetland habitats in Florida’s roadless areas are critically important to species like the flatwoods salamander and others that are very sensitive to hydrologic impacts that result from logging and roadbuilding. The Forest Service’s own research demonstrates road development in natural areas is a significant vector for the introduction of invasive species and that wildfire frequency also increases with road density. Florida’s national forests are home to 136 plant species and 36 animal species designated as either threatened or endangered. Many of these species would be put at even greater risk by expanded logging, mining, and other resource extraction.