Re: Rescission of the Roadless Area Conservation Rule, Docket FS-2025-0001
Born and raised in Alaska, the Tongass National Forest is near and dear to my heart, and I am filing this comment to oppose the proposed rescission of the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (Docket FS-2025-0001). The Tongass is the largest intact temperate rainforest left on Earth. It holds 110 inventoried roadless areas totaling 9,339,575 acres, over 12,930 miles of salmon-producing streams, and roughly 44 percent of all the carbon stored by US national forests. Executive Order 14153 directs the agency to expressly exclude the Tongass from the 2001 Roadless Rule, and the Federal Register rescission notice says so in writing. Under both action alternatives, the Tongass keeps zero acres of roadless protection. That is not a reform. That is a permanent transformation of a place that cannot be rebuilt once it is gone.
I work for our National Scenic Trails, which includes the Continental Divide Trail. Thru-hikers, hunters, and day users depend on the landscapes and watersheds that the Roadless Rule currently protects. The potential impact of logging would be detrimental to drinking water for many Americans in states where protections do not currently match the Roadless Rule.
Having lived near fast-spreading wildfires, I know the impact is hard on communities where homes and livelihoods are lost. National forests that are easily accessible by the public should be managed for forest health in ways that reduce wildfire risk and support the communities around them. The agency's own record states: "Building a road into a forest at high risk from uncharacteristic wildfire effects could increase the incidence of human-caused fires. A human-caused wildland fire is nearly five times more likely to occur on essentially roaded lands than on essentially unroaded lands."
Sincerely,
Sarah Wilson
Lakewood, CO 80215