Opposes rescissionA0 noneSubstance 5/24Posted August 22, 2026 On Regulations.gov
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Dear Secretary:
For someone who values getting out somewhere that requires effort to reach, and who has found that value in roadless areas in Colorado, this rule matters in a way that's connected to everything I do outdoors.
I lived in Colorado for 3 years and made use of roadless areas year-round. That brought me an appreciation for solitude, wilderness and connection to nature. Although I live in a different part of the country now, I am inspired to find more roadless areas near me to get my fill of that quiet, peaceful recreation.
Roads change things permanently. The rule prevents that. Don't rescind it.
The whole point of roadless areas is the lack of access and noise. Hiking in Colorado brought a quietness to my soul that I couldn't find elsewhere. It made me aware of the value of the land in this great country of ours, and I mean value as in something worthwhile, not in a monetary sense.
Regarding the Williams Fork Ptarmingan Adjacent in the Arapaho & Roosevelt NFs, Colorado:
“More than 96% of these areas are located west of the 100[th] meridian, mostly concentrated in northern California, Oregon, Washington, Southeast Alaska, and in Rocky Mountain States. Road construction and reconstruction are already prohibited on 24.2 of the 58.5 million acres of inventoried roadless areas under current land management direction, whereas 34.3 million acres allow road construction and reconstruction. — USDA Forest Service, 2000 (https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/roadless/roadless-feis-ssummary.pdf)”
“Inadequately constructed forest roads can cause severe environmental impacts including road surface erosion and sediment yield, pollution of off-site waters, slope failures and mass movement, direct loss of habitat (by the conversion of the original land cover into an artificial surface) and indirect loss of habitat (by the fragmentation of an ecosystem into smaller and more isolated patches). On steep terrain, 21% of trees were damaged by excavators and 33% of trees were damaged by bulldozers during forest road construction, and on very steep terrain, 27% of trees were damaged by excavators and 44% of trees were damaged by bulldozers during forest road construction. — Erhan Caliskan, 2013 · Iranian Journal of Environmental Health Science & Engineering (https://doi.org/10.1186/1735-2746-10-23)”
“Road mortality is a widely recognized but rarely quantified threat to the viability of amphibian populations. The global extent of the problem is substantial and factors affecting the number of animals killed on highways include life-history traits and landscape features. Secondary effects include genetic isolation due to roads acting as barriers to migration. Long-term effects of roads on population dynamics are often severe and mitigation methods include volunteer rescues and under-road tunnels. Despite the development of methods that reduce road kill in specific locations, there is scant evidence that such measures will protect populations over the long term. — Conservation Biology (Wiley), 2013 (https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12063)”
“A total of 50.3 million acres of protected wilderness areas, roadless areas, and designated critical habitat, as well as 2,300 miles of wild and scenic rivers are included in the emergency declaration map area, fast-tracking destructive projects in areas that were intentionally set aside to preserve their natural values and functions. — Dr. Dawn Woodard, Dr. Matthew McKinzie, Gabrielle Berthel, 2025 (https://www.nrdc.org/media/what-usdas-emergency-logging-map-gets-dangerously-wrong)”
“In 2001, the Roadless Area Conservation Rule prohibited road construction and timber harvest in 240,000 km² of inventoried roadless areas (IRAs) located on United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service lands. Many IRAs are among the most wild, undeveloped areas both in the nation and within their respective states. IRAs increase the size of—and reduce isolation between—protected areas, likely buffering them from external stressors. Formations with the greatest percentage increase in representation when including IRAs in the protected network include Temperate Grassland and Shrubland (57.4%), Cool Temperate Forest and Woodland (52.2%), and Mediterranean Scrub and Grassland (35.5%). — McKinley J. Talty | Kelly Mott Lacroix | Gregory H. Aplet | R. Travis Belote, 2020 · Conservation Science and Practice (https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.288)”
I am so grateful for past administrations for creating and upholding the Roadless Rule so that Americans can be proud of their land and find the peace and recreation they seek.
This isn't a close call. Don't rescind.
With conviction,
CommentID: RLC-20260823-197LA2