Then shall all the trees of wood sing for joy before the LORD

— Psalm 96:10-13

September 8: The U.S. Forest Service just announced that it is extending the public comment period on the roadless rule until November 15th.

On June 28th the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that it intends to replace the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. Instead of the nation's designated roadless areas in U.S. national forests remaining free of new logging roads, the proposed regulatory changes would eliminate all federal prohibitions against the new roads, replacing the regulations "with a procedural rule that would set out an administrative process for State Governors to petition the Secretary of Agriculture to establish or adjust management direction for roadless areas within their State." Moreover, the Forest Service plans to permanently exempt Alaska's national forests from the Roadless Rule.1

Public Comment Period for Proposed Roadless Rule 4

Comments must be received in writing by September 14, 2004.

Written comments on the proposed rule may be sent by the following methods.

Mail:
Content Analysis Team
ATTN: Roadless State Petitions
USDA Forest Service
P.O. Box 221090
Salt Lake City, UT 84122

Fax: (801) 517-1014

Email: statepetitionroadless@fs.fed.us

Alaskan Forests to be Permanently Exempt from Roadless Rules

A separate regulatory proposal outlined in the June 28, 2004 Federal Register would permanently exempt from the Roadless Rule the Tongass and Chugach National Forests in Alaska. These two national forests contain 14.8 million acres of set-aside roadless areas or one-quarter of all roadless land in the National Forest System. This rule is scheduled for release in November 2004.

Background

This major change in federal policy has been proposed despite massive input from the public on the federal government's policy regarding the protection of national forests. In January 1998, USDA Forest Service Chief Michael Dombeck announced that he would be developing a transportation policy for the National Forest System. He also proposed to institute an 18-month road-building moratorium on 130 national forests while that policy was developed. This moratorium on road building in national forests was in response to many appeals — from scientists, foresters and religious leaders — that the nation's remaining roadless areas be preserved.

In June 1999, several hundred religious leaders (including Rev. Elenora Giddings Ivory of the PC(USA) Washington Office) wrote President Clinton and Vice President Gore, urging them to listen to the widespread calls for protecting these areas and "push forcefully for a final national forest roadless policy that truly reflects our Scriptural responsibility to care for this wonderful part of God's creation by protecting roadless areas on all national forests." 2

In October of that year, recognizing growing threats to the health of our national forests, and following decades of study, the U.S. Forest Service proposed setting aside 42 million acres of our last wild national forest lands from road construction. After the most extensive public rulemaking in history (including more than 600 public meetings and a record-breaking 1.6 million favorable public comments), the Roadless Area Conservation Rule was issued. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly stated its support for the protection of national forests from new road building, and the Presbyterian Washington Office published a number of bulletins calling on Presbyterians to participate in the public comment period as the rule was being created.

When the Roadless Rule was finalized in January 2001, it was the most popular rulemaking in history, and protected 58.5 million acres of wilderness. (The Tongass and Chugach National Forests in Alaska, the nation's largest roadless area, were added to the protected list in November 2000). Despite the rule's popularity, there was initial concern that the incoming Bush Administration would not support it. The incoming administration delayed implementation of the Roadless Rule until May 4, 2001. At a news conference that day, Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman and U.S. Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth pledged to "uphold" the roadless rule. "We're here today to announce the department's decision to uphold the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. Through this action, we are reaffirming the Department of Agriculture's commitment to the important challenge of protecting roadless values."

Subsequent actions-and lack of action-by the administration proved less supportive of the Roadless Rule. (The Bush Administration failed to support it in various court challenges.) Were it not for the assistance of a number of attorneys from environmental groups, no lawyers would have defended the rule from challenges by logging companies and a few western states.

What Is at Stake?

In short, the Department of Agriculture proposes to replace the protection from roads for nearly 60 million acres of wilderness with a presumption that roads will be built in roadless areas unless a state objects. Even then the Department of Agriculture could reject the petition from a state. The Federal Register notice includes the following summary of the proposed rule:

Due to the continued legal uncertainty of providing protection for roadless areas through the application of the roadless rule, the agency is proposing to amend the roadless rule by replacing the prohibitions of the January 2001 rule with a procedural rule that would set out an administrative process for State Governors to petition the Secretary of Agriculture to establish or adjust management direction for roadless areas within their State. Such petitions would be evaluated and, if agreed to, addressed by the Secretary in subsequent rule making on a State-by-State basis.3

Thus the administration proposes to eliminate the current rule's restrictions on road building and commercial logging. Without the Roadless Rule, roadless area management would revert to earlier management plans. The local forest management plans would allow road building and logging on most of the 58 million acres of inventoried roadless areas.

The administration's proposal sets up for the first time a two-stage process for states to petition to protect areas. The administration can reject the state proposal, but even if it accepts the proposal, it sets in motion another rule-making procedure that could still result in an administration decision to permit roads and logging. Moreover, the rule turns over to the jurisdiction of a particular governor the fate of forests that belong to all of the people of the nation.

General Assembly

The 202nd General Assembly (1990) recommends: Basic policies, consistent with the spirit of the following aphorisms:

• Keep wildlife wild and free.
• Avoid irreversible change.
• Protect and expand remaining public wildlands.
• Optimize natural diversity; optimize natural stability.
• Increase options for experiencing natural history.
• Do not "discount" the future value of the environment.
• Respect life, the species more than the individual.
• Respect life, the more sentient the more respect.
• Think of nature as a community, more than a commodity.

Implementation of Policies

• Preserve wildlands in all the diverse kinds of American ecosystems, including wildlands near urban areas; and restore degraded wildlands, reintroducing all the original native fauna and flora where possible.
• Protect wetlands, showing special concern for critical environments that support internationally migratory wildlife.
• Support opportunities for wilderness and wildlife education for all ages.
• Stop cutting remaining pristine forests on public lands.
• Provide interpretation and economic support for those persons whose lives and jobs must be altered in the interest of long-range environmental quality.
• In economic development, prefer the most environmentally sustainable option over development that maximizes short-term profits.
• Support Native American efforts to retain and restore wildlands and to maintain a sustainable relationship with wildlife.
• Prohibit trade in endangered wild animals and endangered plants, or products derived from them.
• Stop indiscriminate killing of wild animals.
• Make a high priority the welfare of all zoo animals and other wild animals in captivity. (Minutes, 1990, Part I, p.666)