We applaud
Representatives Hank Johnson, John Lewis, Jim Marshall, and David Scott for
joining Congressmen Inslee (D-WA) and Ramstad (R-MN) and a bipartisan group of
141 original cosponsors to reintroduce the National Forest Roadless Area
Conservation Act to protect 58.5 million acres of national forest lands from
most logging and road-building. At the
same time, Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and John Warner (R-VA) lead a group
of 18 Senators in introducing a companion bill in the Senate.
The
bill will codify the widely popular Roadless Area Conservation Rule which was
finalized after years of scientific study, more than 600 public hearings, and
more than 2.2 million public comments in support of protecting America’s last
wild forests. This outpouring of public support added
up to be the most comments ever received during a federal rulemaking
process.
The roadless
rule is a balanced policy that protects the last third of our national forests
while allowing new road construction in order to fight fires, ensure public
safety, and allow brush clearing to protect forest health. The roadless rule ensures that our national
forests will continue to provide clean drinking water, habitat for wildlife,
and endless opportunities for recreation and solitude.
The Bush
administration continues to attack the roadless rule on multiple fronts. In the courts, they filed an appeal with the
9th Circuit to overturn a decision that reinstated the 2001 Roadless
Rule as the law of the land. In the
states, the administration has prioritized processing petitions that will
remove the protections of the 2001 Roadless Rule from millions of acres of
national forests. It appears that the
only thing the administration is worried about protecting is the profits of the
timber industry.
The
Bush administration should start protecting our last wild forests instead of
the profits of the timber industry. They
should follow the lead of Representatives Johnson, Marshall, Lewis, and Scott by
enforcing the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, until Congress makes those
protections permanent in a law.
With Memorial
Day upon us and the summer right around the corner, let’s make sure that
families in Georgia
and across the country have the opportunity to enjoy the splendor of our
national forests now and for years to come.
That opportunity will be lost if we don’t act now to protect these
precious public lands.
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