County Commissioners Protecting America's Natural Resources 

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Roadless Protection                                          

Check out the Wilderness Society's analysis of the recent landmark decision upholding the Roadless Rule!  To see their analysis, click here.

The current Roadless Area Conservation Rule affects 58.5 million acres of federal forest land, which amounts to 2% of the land base of this country and 31% of the land base of the Forest Service.  You used to be able to go to the Forest Service website to check out the number of acres of inventoried roadless areas in your state and to view maps of each of the federal forests in your state and see where the inventoried roadless areas are located.  That information was removed from the Forest Service website during the Bush era.

John Loomis  and Robert Richardson, in their 2000 publication “Economic Values of Protecting Roadless Areas in the United States,”  “found that in their current condition, the 42 million acres of roadless lands can be expected to provide almost $600 million in recreation benefits each year, more than $280 in passive use values, and nearly 24,000 jobs.”

As the Forest Service web site used to say, “Inventoried roadless areas possess social and ecological values and characteristics that are becoming scarce in our Nation’s increasingly developed landscape.  Protecting air and water quality, biodiversity, and opportunities for personal renewal are highly valued qualities of roadless areas.  Conserving inventoried roadless areas leaves a legacy of natural areas for future generations.  The Roadless Area Conservation Rule limits or prohibits activities that would most negatively affect these values.”  That is sadly no longer true.

Click here to read what county officials say about roadless protection.

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Masthead photo credits: Rolf Sklar, Curtis J. Carley FWS, NOAA