Dear Secretary Rollins,
I strongly oppose the USDA’s proposal to eliminate or weaken the Roadless Rule. This reckless action would devastate public lands, waste taxpayer resources, and undermine the water, wildlife habitat, and recreation opportunities on which millions of Americans depend.
Forester, wildlife ecologist, writer, and conservationist Aldo Leopold belonged to the first generation of American foresters and helped build the U.S. Forest Service into the effective agency it became. In 1924 he worked to establish the world's first wilderness area on the Gila National Forest in New Mexico. He ALWAYS worked to reconcile our need for sustainably managed forests with our need for protected wild landscapes. The roadless rule is the living legacy of Aldo Leopold and those who worked beside him to safeguard all the values of our national forest lands.
In 1937, Leopold wrote: To build a road is so much simpler than to think of what the country really needs." Our country needs much more than the illusory "benefits" that would come from curtailing the roadless rule. It badly needs renewed respect for land as "a community to which we belong"--and respect for one another and for future generations who will value wildlands even more than we do.
Leopold also wrote, in 1928: "The wilderness idea is a small but significant outgrowth of the idea of National Forests. Its importance is that of a test case. The decision, in my opinion, will indicate whether the U.S. Forest Service is tending to become a federal bureau which executes the laws, or a national enterprise which makes history."
Do the right thing. Keep the roadless rule intact. And keep the respect of your fellow citizens.
Sincerely,
Curt Meine
Sauk City, WI 53583-9694
curtmeine@gmail.com