{"id":48534,"date":"2025-08-27T14:50:27","date_gmt":"2025-08-27T21:50:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/earthjustice.org\/?post_type=feature&p=48534"},"modified":"2025-09-23T16:03:56","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T23:03:56","slug":"the-forests-and-lakes-rivers-and-wildlife-protected-by-the-roadless-rule","status":"publish","type":"feature","link":"https:\/\/earthjustice.org\/feature\/roadless-rule-photos","title":{"rendered":"The Repeal of the Roadless Rule Threatens Our Wildest Public Lands"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t

Aug. 27, 2025<\/p>\n

The Repeal of the Roadless Rule Threatens Our Wildest Public Lands<\/h1>\n\t

The Roadless Rule<\/a> — the most important land and forest protection measure of our lifetime — protects 45 million acres of unfragmented, pristine national forest lands from clearcutting and damaging new roads.<\/p>\n

Your voice is needed<\/strong> Tell the U.S. Forest Service to protect the Roadless Rule.<\/p>\n Take Action<\/a>\n\t

Where are areas protected under the Roadless Rule?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Across 36 states and Puerto Rico<\/a>, the Roadless Rule protects about 30% of all national forest lands — bringing outsized benefits to ourselves and the natural world.<\/p>\n

Find roadless areas near you with the Inventoried Roadless Area Explorer<\/a>.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"45\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t

View interactive map<\/a> \/ © OpenStreetMap contributors \/ © CARTO \/ USDA Data<\/p>\n\t

Created in 2001 with an unprecedented level of public input — 600 public hearings, 1.6 million comments from the public<\/a> considered — the Roadless Rule was, and continues to be, overwhelmingly popular with the American public.<\/p>\n

The public wanted backcountry wild lands within the forest system protected for wildlife and people alike — and also wanted to end roadbuilding that benefited the timber industry at the expense of taxpayers.<\/p>\n\t

“The Roadless Rule was a huge idea. It was an example of big-picture thinking that captured the public’s imagination and got a lot of attention and support.

“It has the potential today to reinspire a generation tired of short-sighted leaders.”<\/mark><\/p>\n

Tom Waldo<\/strong><\/p>\n

Earthjustice attorney<\/p>\n

Helped lead the legal fight for the Tongass National Forest and the Roadless Rule for two decades<\/p>\n\t

What do Roadless-protected areas look like?<\/strong><\/p>\n\t

Oregon<\/p>\n

Tumalo Mountain<\/p>\n

The Tumalo Mountain Roadless Area in central Oregon is popular with hikers, mountain bikers, and skiers.<\/p>\n

The Roadless Rule protects nearly two million acres of national forest land in Oregon.<\/p>\n

Kacey Klonsky \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\"Skiing\n\t\t\t\t\"Jack\n\t

Montana<\/p>\n

Badger-Two Medicine Roadless Area<\/p>\n

Musician and Blackfeet cultural spokesman Jack Gladstone.<\/p>\n

For more than 10,000 years, the Badger-Two Medicine area<\/a> near Glacier National Park in Montana has provided strength, subsistence, and cultural identity for members of the Blackfeet Nation.<\/p>\n

Rebecca Drobis for Earthjustice<\/p>\n\t

Vermont<\/p>\n

Green Mountain National Forest<\/p>\n

Beaver pond in Green Mountain National Forest, home to the largest Roadless-protected area in Vermont.<\/p>\n

A keystone species, the beaver is a small cog bringing critical benefits to the broader ecosystem.<\/p>\n

Beaver dams slow the flow of waterways, and the resulting pond not only protects the entrance of the beaver’s home, but also provides ideal habitat for a range of species – and allows the pooled water to gradually seep into the ground and recharge aquifers.<\/p>\n

Kurt Budliger for Earthjustice<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\"Aerial\n\t

What has the Roadless Rule accomplished?<\/strong><\/p>\n

For more than a generation, the Roadless Rule has protected centuries-old stands of old-growth trees from logging and provided essential habitat for wildlife, abundant recreational opportunities, and critical buffers against climate change<\/a>.<\/p>\n Test Your Knowledge\n Trees in the Tongass were alive when …<\/strong>\n