In testimony before the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee, Trout Unlimited President and CEO Chris Wood opposed H.R. 7895, a bill that would nullify the 2001 Roadless Rule nationwide and prevent similar rules from being created and administered in the future.
“The Roadless Rule strikes a common-sense balance: the rule allows forest health projects and hazardous fuels treatments in Roadless Areas.”
“Off highway vehicles, grazing, mining, energy development, firewood cutting, and other multiple use activities are all allowed within Roadless Areas. The only thing that is prohibited is the construction of new roads, a step that seems logical given the $6-7 billion maintenance backlog on the Forest Service’s existing 370,000 mile road system.” – Chris Wood
Watch Chris Wood’s full oral testimony
Read Chris Wood’s full written testimony here.
Improving forest health and reducing unnaturally intense wildfire risk is increasingly important in our National Forests and neighboring communities; however, these are outcomes best achieved by working together through the existing regulatory framework.
Research supported by the Forest Service demonstrates that fuel management activities in roadless areas have been more numerous on a per-square kilometer basis than elsewhere on national forests. Twenty-five years of experience under the Roadless Rule has shown that the rule improves, rather than impedes, the wise management of these lands.
Roadless areas serve as the last, best refuge for sensitive fisheries; within the current range of native trout and salmon, they are 40% more common in roadless areas than in roaded forest lands.
Eliminating protections for roadless areas would harm fish and wildlife populations, reduce quality hunting and fishing opportunities and could burden taxpayers with even greater costs of unnecessary road repairs, and lead to even more human-caused wildfires.
The HNR hearing precedes the anticipated USDA repeal of the 2001 Roadless Rule, rolling back critical protections on tens of millions of acres of public lands. ‘
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