July 14, 2004 According to an announcement by the Bush Administration on Monday, state governors have been handed the power of deciding whether their national forest lands will remain largely roadless or will open to new logging and other commercial interests that have long petitioned for additional roads.
The Roadless Area Conservation Rule, a plan installed by former President Bill Clinton in January 2001, put a stop to any new roadways in about 58.6 million acres of wilderness in 39 states, to the frustration of timber companies and the elation of outdoor enthusiasts and environmentalists. The "roadless rule" had been challenged in several federal courts and the U.S. Agriculture Department sought to quell the dispute.
According to The Seattle Times, 12 Western states are home to 97 percent of all roadless areas. Alaska will be most affected, with almost one-fourth of the nation’s wilderness.
Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, who announced the shift in policy from Boise, Idaho, said there will be a 60-day public comment period, then an 18-month interim rule, which is the development period for governors’ petitions. The petitions will then have to be approved by the chief of the Forest Service. She said the new policy intends to "meet the needs of local communities and maintain the undeveloped character of the most pristine areas of the national forest system."
The Wilderness Society, based in Seattle, reports that U.S. forests already have enough roads to circle the earth 15 times (though the precise definition of "road" has been hotly debated by Western land-use organizations), and that these are in need of roughly $10 million in maintenance.
If the roadless rule is overturned, "We’re clearly headed toward very inconsistent management for the wilderness," said Mike Anderson, senior resource analysis for The Wilderness Society.
Most of the Western states with large areas of disputed land are already leaning in one direction or the other on this issue. The governors of Nevada and Arizona have yet to publicly state their positions on the roadless rule, but the positions taken in the past by the other ten states are described briefly below:
Alaska
Governor Frank Murkowski’s spokesperson told the Associated Press she didn’t think he would petition the Forest Service to make any additional areas roadless. According to a July 13 report in the Juneau Empire, two logging plans were approved earlier this month on more than 20,000 acres of roadless lands. Environmentalists worry that the current Tongass Land Management Plan will be threatened.
California
California's four million acres of roadless forests represent about four percent of the state's land. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s spokeswoman told the San Francisco Chronicle on July 13 that the governor shared the views of the Bush administration. The new decision may refuel development plans for two new ski areas in the Eastern Sierras, but there is little worry that logging will play a major factor in California. Jack Blackwell, the Forest Service's regional forester for California, told the Chronicle that fewer than 400,000 acres are even suitable for logging.
Colorado
Colorado Natural Resources Director Russell George told the Denver Post on July 13 that the state would listen to all sides before making a recommendation and called the decision "a breath of fresh air." The state has 4.4 million roadless acres of land, but the state has previously banned roads and development on another 31 million acres within national forests.
Idaho
This state has more roadless land than any other state in the lower 48--about 9.3 million acres. Governor Dirk Kempthorne stood next to Veneman when she broke the Bush administration’s new statement, and has publicly opposed Clinton’s roadless rule. Environmentalists worry that he will be easily persuaded by the state’s heavy logging interests.
Montana
The state has about six million acres of roadless land, but according to the Wildlife Society’s Anderson, Governor Judy Martz is pro-development. Martz’s chief natural resources advisor told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle on July 14 that the governor will "look at [the issue] on a forest-by-forest basis, county by county." The Chronicle also reported that Martz was a vocal opponent to the roadless rule, and has scheduled meetings to reach a compromise with the Montana Wilderness Association and logging industry representatives.
New Mexico
Governor Bill Richardson told ABC News Tuesday he would request that the state’s 1.1 million acres of roadless land remain protected. He told The Christian Science Monitor that the roll-back of the roadless rule "is an abdication of federal responsibility."
Oregon
According to a July 13 The Seattle Times report, about 750,000 acres are already open to road building under individual management plans. Governor Ted Kulongoski’s spokesperson said the roadless rule has been "widely supported by most people in the United States as well as Oregonians."
Utah
A pro-logging state, Utah filed a lawsuit against the government in 2001 for closing down four million acres of land to road development. And in the 1990s, according to an April Salt Lake Tribune article, Utah sued the Department of the Interior over 2.6 million acres, stating that the state needed those lands for things like oil and gas leases. Governor Olene Walker said she is "delighted the forest service recognizes the state should have more of a say in how national forests are used. We’re closer to the forests and issues than those inside the (Washington, D.C.) Beltway."
Washington
Governor Gary Lock told The Seattle Times on July 13 that he would attempt to keep the state's one million acres of roadless forests road-free.
Wyoming
The state has about 3.2 million roadless acres, has vocally opposed Clinton’s roadless rule. Last July, a federal judge in Wyoming issued a permanent injunction against the roadless rule, concluding that its use to create wilderness circumvented both the law and the will of Congress.
