Dear USDA Leadership:
In my experience as an outdoor enthusiast who regularly accesses remote public land, I have come to understand that what roadless designation protects is not merely acreage but a particular condition of landscape — one that, once altered by road construction, does not return within any human timeframe.
I was just backpacking in this area last weekend, and it is both easily accessible by carefully managed roads and incredibly beautiful in its wildness.
Artist point is a very accessible trailhead, but the beauty of it is you can leave and go any amount of distance (a mile away or climb Mount baker or something in between) and once you are a few minutes from the parking lot it feels like you are fully in nature and can appreciate its beauty and size. Roads in this area would take away this feeling, which would ruin a beautiful and special area.
If this rule is rescinded I would lose the ability to access some of the most beautiful parts of Washington in the quiet peaceful and awe-inspiringly beautiful way that they currently exist.
Regarding the Mt. Baker North in the Mt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington:
Timber harvest, associated road construction, and vegetation removal directly alter roadless character and degrade habitat quality.
Microclimate buffering recovers slowly after clearcutting. A 2025 study of boreal forests found that even-aged stands took roughly 30 years to recover the temperature-buffering capacity of unharvested forest. During that recovery period, the cooling effect of intact canopy is eliminated — exactly when species most need it during summer heat extremes (Starck et al. 2025). — Starck et al., 2025 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110434)
Rescinding the Roadless Rule would open the Mt. Baker North, Mt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest to road construction and associated ground disturbance. The direct and indirect effects of that activity are precisely what makes a specific comment about this area necessary.
This is clearly an unpopular suggestion, to repeal the roadless rule, and I join with all the other commenters in demanding these lands stay roadless.
I'm asking the Department to hold the line on the Roadless Rule. There's no good reason to let it go.
With thanks,
CommentID: RLC-20260921-CL1NYQ