Trump Administration Takes Aim at 'Roadless Rule,' Shortening Public Comment Period

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced its intention to repeal the Roadless Rule, a policy that protects nearly 59 million acres of forest from road construction and logging, and proposed a reorganization plan that includes closing nine regional offices.

The Roadless Rule, implemented at the end of the Clinton administration, prohibits road construction, road reconstruction, and timber harvesting on a wide swath of US Forest Service (USFS) land. However, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has announced that the USFS plans to rescind the Rule, with a public comment period beginning in May 2023 and running until Sept. 19.

Mike Dombeck, a former chief of the Forest Service who served from 1997 to 2001 and helped develop the Rule, finds the rationale for repealing the Roadless Rule puzzling and a bit of a ruse. He notes that only about 8% of forest in roadless areas is productive timber base.

The National Association of Forest Service Retirees has submitted comments arguing that the proposal lacks detail and could compromise regional functions. They are concerned that losing research stations and capacity could weaken the agency's ability to respond to disasters effectively.

Closing regional offices could potentially lead to the loss of staff with knowledge of wildfire mitigation and response to invasive species. Alex Craven, the Sierra Club's senior campaign representative for forest conservation, notes that most of the USFS regional offices are located west of the Rocky Mountains. He is interested in ensuring that people understand what policy measures ensure that public lands remain as they are thought of.

The USFS reorganization plan is argued to improve "effectiveness and accountability" by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. However, critics argue that the truncated comment period of three weeks is an "unusual choice" compared to the norm of 30-day comment periods. Sam Evans, an attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center, states that this limits the opportunity for public comment.

Grassroots organizations are attempting to fight a repeal of the Roadless Rule. They argue that the Rule is crucial for protecting wildlife habitats, clean water sources, and carbon storage. Experts caution that the reorganization could result in the loss of irreplaceable institutional knowledge and make it difficult to meet statutory requirements under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Despite proposed NEPA changes by the Trump administration, the ultimate responsibility of the USFS to consider environmental impacts remains, according to Sam Evans. The USFS will still have to follow these requirements when making decisions about the Roadless Rule and the reorganization plan.

The Roadless Rule has been a contentious issue since its inception, with supporters arguing that it is essential for protecting public lands and critics contending that it unnecessarily restricts economic development. The current proposal to repeal the Rule and reorganize the USFS is likely to spark further debate and action from conservation groups and stakeholders.

Trump Administration Takes Aim at 'Roadless Rule,' Shortening Public Comment Period