“critical to the livelihood and culture of Indigenous communities”
The comment
Please protect our water, forests, and wildlife: Do not repeal the Roadless Rule! There are already plenty of roads for the USFS to effectively manage the forests. The Rule already allows for thinning and other management to reduce wildfire risk and follow USFS best practices. Studies actually demonstrate that more roads lead to more fires, despite the incorrect claim that more roads would help fight fires.
As an avid outdoorsperson, I highly value pristine forests far from road noise. These places are special and so different from areas closer to roads.
As a former bird biologist, I know that habitat fragmentation and loss is driving the decline of many species of birds and wildlife. Once the habitat is altered, it is impossible to fully restore it to its pristine condition. Smaller patches of pristine forest support fewer resources, lowering the carrying capacity for populations and increasing competition. Roads and related human impacts impede wildlife migration which leads to a loss of genetic diversity and puts strain on wildlife that are already struggling to survive. Roads also change patterns of temperature, wind, and sunlight which impacts all nearby species of plants and wildlife. In addition, human presence introduces a host of other problems such as increased fire risk, water and soil contamination, noise pollution, etc.
There are already so few places where there are no roads. Protected roadless forests are among the nation's most important and most visited public lands. They safeguard river headwaters that provide drinking water for millions, preserve wildlife habitat for hundreds of species and provide popular recreation areas. Many roadless forests are also critical to the livelihood and culture of Indigenous communities.
The Roadless Area Conservation Rule has been in place with bipartisan support for 25 years. Repealing it will only allow logging and development to irreversibly damage these special places.
Please ensure these forests remain protected to preserve the healthy ecosystems and outdoor traditions we have today. There is no need to repeal the Roadless Rule. Thank you for reading and considering my comment.