Subject: Oppose rescission of the 2001 Roadless Rule - Docket FS-2025-0001
To the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Department of Agriculture,
I am writing to express my strong opposition to the proposal to fully or partially rescind, weaken, or roll back the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule.
As a third-generation Idahoan, and registered Republican, I’m horrified by these attacks on our public lands. I am a Volunteer Coordinator that organizes trail construction and maintenance projects within Roadless Areas, and I was previously a Backcountry Ranger for the Deschutes, Payette, and Inyo National Forests. While working on the Payette National Forest, I was exclusively within areas protected by the Roadless Rule. I’ve hiked thousands of miles within Roadless Areas and none should be opened to development. These lands are essential sources of water, food, and recreation for hundreds of millions of Americans. Roadless areas reduce fire risk, improve wildlife habitat, and increase recreation opportunities. Not to mention, our protected open spaces is what makes the Western United States the best place in the world. These last undeveloped swathes of land help preserve the wild Western American identity, they’re sacred to us all.
To summarize, fully or partially rescinding the Roadless Rule would threaten unfragmented backcountry landscapes, wildlife habitats, clean water sources, and increase wildfire risk. Roads fragment ecosystems in ways that cause long-term ecological harm, and dismantling these protections undermines the integrity of our public lands. And on top of all that, it would fundamentally undermine the Western American identity.
I urge the Forest Service to drop the proposed rescission and instead support Alternative 1 (the No Action alternative) to maintain full, permanent protections for all the currently designated inventoried roadless areas.
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this important issue, and for extending the comment period to allow for more voices to be heard.
Sam Woosley
Eagle, ID - 83616