FS-2025-0001-313438

Acting Director, Ecosystem Management Coordination, USDA Forest Service Joshua White,Dear Joshua White, USDA Forest Service Acting Director of Ecosystem Management Coordination, and Members of Congress:I'm respectfully writing to oppose the US Forest Service's proposal to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (Roadless Rule). Please drop this plan or select Alternative 1, No Action.To me as an Appalachian Trail hiker, the forests of Northern New England are critical to my values and sense of place. To harm what Nature has given us would be without excuse or rationale or justification and a permanent loss to humanity and the rest of nature.For a quarter century, the Roadless Rule has provided an essential layer of protection for approximately 58.5 million-acres of National Forest System lands, or about a third of all lands managed by the USDA Forest Service (Forest Service). “Inventoried Roadless Areas” (IRAs) protected by the Roadless Rule represent many of the wildest, healthiest, and most intact landscapes in the United States (https://www.pfpi.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Roadless-Rule-Rescision-Threatens-Preprint-Mildrexler-et-al.-2026.pdf). Over 1.5 million Americans submitted comments in support of the Roadless Rule when it was developed, a record for public participation in federal rule-making that still holds to this day.In New England, the Roadless Rule protects 260,000 acres, or approximately one-fifth of the White and Green Mountain National Forests. Treasured landscapes protected by the Rule include Franconia Notch, Mt Moosilauke, Mt Chocorua, and the Presidential Range, as well as Vermont’s White Rocks. The famous Long Trail and Appalachian Trail traverse numerous Inventoried Roadless Areas that are protected by the Rule. The Rule also safeguards drinking water, protects against floods and droughts, and supports the region's biodiversity, including imperiled species such as the Northern Long-eared Bat, brook trout, Canada lynx, Bicknell's Thrush, and American marten, among many others.Only 3.3% of New England is protected from timber harvest and road construction, yet scientists say we must protect at least 10% of the region for biodiversity, carbon storage, and the well-being of communities. Inventoried Roadless Areas (which total a mere 2% of the lower 48 states) are recognized and protected by the Rule, and there is already an unsustainable backlog in forest road maintenance. As for Mew England's drinking water, the Roadless Rule helps to protect water for 8.8% of Vermont residents and 7.3% of New Hampshire residents (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pwat.0000538). Additionally, 7% of Massachusetts residents get their water ultimately from the White Mountain National Forest.The Roadless Rule is also among our best tools for addressing wildfire. Most are started by people and fires are four times more likely to start near roads (https://doi.org/10.1186/s42408-026-00450-2). The Roadless Rule also protects culturally-important sites and subsistence use areas. These spaces are critical to food security for many indigenous communities. They sustain cultural and spiritual practices such as hunting, fishing, and gathering forest plants for food, medicine, and traditional arts.Please select Alternative 1, No Action.Finally, I call on my members of Congress to cosponsor the Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2025, H.R.3930 and S.2042, to codify the Roadless Rule in statute.Thank you for your anticipated cooperation in this urgent matter.GeorgeConnecticut