I oppose rescinding the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (2001 Roadless Rule).
In my home state of Oregon, nearly 200,000 acres of inventoried roadless lands are at stake—about 137,000 acres in the Deschutes National Forest and another 61,000 acres in the Ochoco National Forest and Crooked River National Grasslands. Across the country, the rollback could put more than 58 million acres of undeveloped National Forest land at risk.
These are not just empty acres on a map. The areas in Oregon are areas that I have personally recreated in during the 50+ years I have lived in the state. Roadless forests provide critical habitat for salmon, trout, owls, wolves, and other imperiled species. They protect migration corridors for elk, mule deer, and other wildlife. They safeguard the headwaters that provide clean drinking water to communities like Bend—and nationally, National Forests and Grasslands provide drinking water for more than 60 million people.
They also support hunting, fishing, gathering, hiking, camping, paddling, mountain biking, skiing, and the solitude that makes Oregon such a special place to live. Places like the Metolius River, Paulina Lake, East Lake, and the Pacific Crest Trail are part of our region's natural heritage.
And rescinding the Roadless Rule is not a solution to wildfire. The rule already allows roads to be constructed when necessary to respond to fires and other emergencies. Meanwhile, research has found that wildfires are far more likely to start near roads. More roads and more industrial activity in these forests could mean more fragmentation, more habitat loss, and more opportunities for human-caused wildfire.
We should be protecting the forests, clean water, wildlife habitat, and recreational opportunities that future generations will depend on—not opening some of our last remaining wild places to more roads and industrial development.
Please keep the Roadless Rule in place and protect these irreplaceable public lands. They are too beautiful to destroy and leave unprotected!
Regards,
Tracy