I live in Shelton WA and am writing to urge the U.S. Department of Agriculture to retain the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule and select the No Action Alternative. My connection to National Forest lands includes hiking and backpacking, hunting or fishing, camping, and living in or near a National Forest community. I highly value visiting natural spaces where access is hike-in only.
Areas north of Brown Creek CG and LaBar horse camp are places that has shaped my views on this proposal. It is within the Wonder Mountain Wilderness Inventoried Roadless Area in Olympic National Forest. There is something so different about this area vs other parts of the ONF, wildlife is abundant and the understory is more navigable.
I am concerned about the cost of expanding the National Forest road system. It is clear that the current roads are barely maintained in these areas. Private companies are allowed to completely block well established FS roads for their own personal benefit at the cost of tax payer dollars.
I am concerned about clean water and healthy watersheds. I have seen time and time again the struggle of the current road system failing to be properly maintained, passing on the cost to the tax payer for upgrading poorly executed drainage and waterways.
Roadless areas matter to me for recreation and the experiences they provide. It is ultimately our responsibility to protect remote area recreation for future generations.
I am concerned about how USDA is weighing wildfire, management flexibility, and the effects of increased access. Road access makes wild fire risk higher, ignition points can be a hot exhaust, a smoker tossing a cigarette out of their window, sparks from a poorly maintained motorbike exhaust system or reflective ignition from convex glass or metal debris/garbage.
I am concerned about increased timber-development pressure in currently roadless areas. Private interests for logging will bend the rules to meet production demands.
The lack of staffing/enforcement to inspect logging operations have caused the hightened wildfire risk with the higher concentration of stumpage and debris. Years of this buildup have created a tinderbox waiting to have some form of ignition to set it ablaze.
Before rescinding the national rule, I would like USDA to answer this question: How would USDA account for the long-term cost of maintaining, reconstructing, and eventually decommissioning additional roads?
For these reasons, I urge USDA to retain the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule and select the No Action Alternative. Thank you for considering my comments.