Sierra Club Statement on Closing of Roadless Rule Repeal Comment Period

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture closed its abnormally short public comment period on rescinding the Roadless Area Conservation Rule.

The three-week comment period was organized to receive public input on the Trump administration's proposal to revoke the Roadless Rule, a policy enacted in 2001 that protects more than 60 million acres of pristine lands in national forests across 36 states and Puerto Rico. In June, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the administration's plan to repeal the rule, which would open these wild landscapes to roads and development.

The comment period was remarkably short, lasting only three weeks. It is common for public comment periods on proposed federal rules to last from 30 to 90 days. Despite the brief comment period, Sierra Club members and supporters submitted more than 40,000 comments in defense of the Roadless Rule.

The two-decade-old rule generally protects against new roadbuilding for logging and oil-and-gas drilling in unfragmented, backcountry forestlands that have never been disturbed by major development. During the 2001 process that resulted in the rule, the U.S. Forest Service held more than 600 public meetings alone to help develop the policy.

Roadless forests offer people a wide range of recreational activities, provide wildlife with much-needed habitat, and protect the headwaters of major rivers, which are vital for maintaining clean, mountain-fed drinking water nationwide. Rescinding the Roadless Rule nationally would increase logging and other destructive, extractive development in public forests that currently function as intact ecosystems that benefit wildlife and people alike.

In response, Alex Craven, Sierra Club's Forest Campaign Manager, released the following statement:

"When the Forest Service developed the Roadless Rule twenty years ago, they collected more than 1.5 million comments over 18 months of public engagement including hundreds of hearings across the country. The vast majority supported protecting roadless areas, and the agency listened. The Trump administration thought they could stifle public outcry to their attempts to repeal this critical policy - they were wrong. In less than one month, thousands of Americans made their voices heard and said 'yes' to protecting the heart of our public lands. The American people have been clear and they have been consistent when it comes to our public lands, and if the Trump administration axes the Roadless Rule, it will be in direct opposition to what the people have demanded for more than two decades."

About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America's largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit https://www.sierraclub.org.