Years ago I took my teenage nephew into the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. He grew up in the suburbs of another state and had never been in real wilderness. That night he saw the Milky Way. Years later he told me it was still amazing to him. No screen gave him that. Silence, darkness, and open country did.
I am an Arizona resident, a backpacker, hiker, kayaker, and angler, and I am learning to hunt. I strongly oppose rescinding the Roadless Rule, because kids deserve the chance to have that experience, away from technology and noise, and roadless areas are where they can still find it.
More than 1.2 million acres in Arizona are roadless, including about 285,000 acres on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. Inventoried roadless areas exist on all four forests the Arizona National Scenic Trail crosses. Once these places are roaded and logged, they do not come back.
This is also an economic issue. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reports that outdoor recreation added about $15.4 billion to Arizona's economy in 2024, 2.7% of state GDP, and supported roughly 118,700 jobs. Those jobs are in lodging, guiding, gear retail, restaurants, and gateway towns that depend on intact public land. Wild country is not a cost to our economy. It is an asset that cannot be rebuilt once it is lost.
I also object to the process. In 2005, during a previous attempt to rescind the rule, the comment period totaled 182 days. This time the public has had just 53 days, including a 21-day initial period. A decision affecting more than a million Arizona acres deserves far more time for public input.
The agency should also weigh public opinion. The Forest Service received more than 600,000 comments in the first round, and conservation groups report the agency's own count shows 99 percent opposed rescission.
I urge the Forest Service to withdraw this proposal and keep the Roadless Rule in place. The next generation is counting on us to leave them something worth seeing.