“The elimination of the Roadless Rule threatens 45 million acres, much of which is wilderness, that are…”

The elimination of the Roadless Rule threatens 45 million acres, much of which is wilderness, that are currently managed by the U.S. Forest Service. Among the precious areas which are protected by the rule are Sand Creek, Inyan Kara and Beaver Park in the Black Hills National Forest, and Indian Creek, Red Shirt, Cheyenne River, First Black Canyon and Jim Wilson Canyon in the Buffalo Gap National Grassland. The Black Hills National Forest, much loved by sportsmen and recreationists as well as local residents, already has over 7500 miles of forest system roads. The forest would actually be well-served if some existing roads were retired; degradation of our existing roadless areas would be a tragic mistake. The Black Hills are sacred to many Native tribes, including the Lakota, Nakota, Dakota, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Arikara, Hidatsa and Mandan peoples. In addition to providing areas for traditional religious ceremonies, the forest contains ancient (and fragile) rock art which would clearly be threatened by additional road construction. Eliminating protection for our roadless areas raises the threat of reckless over-logging, the destruction of wildlife habitat, popular recreation areas, and clean drinking water that much of western South Dakota and eastern Wyoming depends upon. Construction of additional roads will doubtless lead to more human-caused fires. The threat of off-highway vehicles (ATV’s, UTV’s, side-by-sides and dirt bikes) would inevitably increase conflicts among recreational users of the Black Hills. The Forest Service currently has difficulty enforcing necessary protections, and unauthorized OHV routes are already degrading the Black Hills with dust, noise, congestion and damage to existing trails. We do not need a regulatory change that significantly worsens these problems. There is an urgent need to protect clean drinking water at a time of increasing drought in our region. Groundwater in the Black Hills is an interconnected system, and the Madison and Minnelusa aquifers protect our environment and our quality of life. Undisturbed creeks in the Black Hills support our wild trout population. There is also a need to protect endangered species, and increased human access in motorized vehicles will threaten our elk, mule deer, mountain lion, bighorn sheep, wild turkey, northern goshawk and other vital species in our region. For all of these reasons, we implore our federal government to leave the Roadless Rule intact.