I am an Oregon resident writing to oppose the USDA's proposal to rescind or weaken the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule. I urge the Forest Service to CHOOSE THE NO ACTION ALTERNATIVE and keep full Roadless Rule protections in place.
Central Oregon has close to 200,000 acres of inventoried roadless areas in the Deschutes National Forest, Ochoco National Forest, and Crooked River National Grassland. For nearly 25 years, these lands have protected clean drinking water, provided cold streams for fish and connected habitat for wildlife, and supported the outdoor recreation and quality of life that sustain local economies.
Oregon's roadless areas are where I go for peace and quiet, to get away from civilization and see what this state looked like before roads reached everywhere. As a wildlife photographer, I depend on these places, because animals gather where there is no traffic and leave when roads move in. Once a road is built, that solitude and that wildlife are gone, and no amount of restoration brings them back the same way.
Building roads into these areas would do lasting harm. Bend's drinking water begins in the headwaters of Bridge Creek and Tumalo Creek in the Deschutes National Forest, which serve more than 100,000 people. Roads bring erosion and sediment into streams like these, threatening both fish and drinking water. Research shows wildfires are four times more likely to ignite near roads. Roads also spread invasive species and break up wildlife corridors, making forests less resilient as wildfire patterns change.
Rescinding the rule also makes little economic sense. Logging these areas would bring little return to Central Oregon while damaging the scenery, recreation, and habitat that draw people to live and visit here. And the Forest Service already has a multibillion-dollar maintenance backlog on its existing roads. Adding new roads it cannot afford to maintain is not responsible management.
PLEASE ABANDON THIS EFFORT and KEEP THE ROADLESS RULE FULLY IN PLACE to protect clean water, wildlife, recreation, and resilient forests for future generations.
Meagan Lapworth
North Bend, OR