I oppose the proposal to fully or partially rescind the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. I am a resident of San Diego, California and work as a professor in a local community college. I am also the Executive Director of the Friends of Rose Creek, a community group who advocates for and tends Rose Creek.
I love to hike in the mountains of San Diego and Los Angeles including the Cleveland National Forest and the Cucamonga Wilderness in the Angeles National Forest.
Wildernesses are rare, wild places where one can retreat from civilization and reconnect with the Earth, and find healing, meaning, and significance. Wilderness contributes to the ecologic, economic, and social health and well-being of our citizens. The only way to protect these amazing areas is to not build roads. I recently had the privilege of camping in the Allegheny National Forest. There were thirty year old roads that had been closed off by the Forest Service and that were still visible and my feet could still feel the hard pack. Once a road is built it doesn't go away in a lifetime.
Over 80% of wildfires in the west are caused by humans either accidentally or initially. Most wildfires start near roads. If our goal is to reduce wildfires in the backcountry, then we must maintain the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. Wild lands contribute to clean air, protect water sources we depend on, and create spaces for large and critically sensitive species like Big Horn Sheep, Bald Eagles, California Condors, and Mountain Lions to have places to live, hunt, and raise their young without interacting with people. The lack of roads keeps habitats unfragmented and preserves ancient migration routes.
Roadless areas in forests shelter more than 220 species that are threatened, endangered or proposed for Endangered Species Act protection.
These intact ecosystems not only provide countless benefits to wildlife, but also to humans in shared places to experience the world beyond engines and electronics. The clean air generated by these wild places helps to offset the pollution caused by coal burning energy plants, vehicle emissions, and air polluting manufacturing plants. Clean streams support our fisheries that employ millions of Americans. Wild places help us preserve sacred spaces for indigenous Americans who have lived and prayed on these lands since time immemorial. The first time a young person of the 21st Century experiences a roadless area on a hike, is like transporting a child to the moon. It opens their eyes to a world they never knew existed.
We care for these lands today as a down payment on the world we want our children to inherit in 50 or 100 years. Once a road is built, it may still be here 100 years from now and that changes everything for the worse.
Respectfully,
Karin Zirk
4629 Cass Street #188
San Diego CA 92109
Nature deficit disorder refers to the negative effects experienced by individuals, particularly children, who do not spend enough time outdoors in natural environments.