Background
Roadless areas within the National Forest System have been the subject
of congressional hearings, lawsuits, and appeals over the past three decades.
The U.S. Forest Service defines roadless areas as those without either
classified or authorized roads. During the 1970’s, the Forest Service initiated
an inventory of roadless areas of 5,000 acres or larger to evaluate their
wilderness character and value. Two such assessments termed Roadless Area
Review and Evaluation were conducted and have been labeled RARE I and RARE
II. The agency estimates that there are about 54 million acres of inventoried
roadless areas, and 380,000 miles of road in its system. Forest Service
areas without official roads usually include rugged terrain, are inaccessible
for some other reason, have low timber values, or are considered environmentally
sensitive. However, it does appear that some areas where roads existed
in the past but have reestablished forested conditions are now considered
roadless. In addition, some of the areas in the initial inventory have
since been congressionally designated as wilderness.
The Forest Service Proposal
In October 1999, President Clinton ordered the Forest Service to study
the issue of how roadless areas within the national forest system would
be managed in the future. Later in October, the agency issued a notice
of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to address
the issue. What has created some confusion among those interested in access
to forestlands is the agency's involvement in four seemingly overlapping
initiatives and how these initiatives would interrelate. The four concurrent
activities are a roadless area initiative, a road management policy, a
planning rule, and an overall strategic plan. The release of the
EIS statement was accompanied by the announcement of a two-part process
for future. Part one included a strict limitation on activities such as
new road construction in inventoried roadless areas. Part two was
designed to manage inventoried roadless areas and to determine what protections
should be extended to uninventoried roadless areas. The draft EIS is scheduled
to be released in May 2000 to be followed by the final EIS by the end of
the year.
Congressional Concern
Two subcommittees of the House Resources Committee have conducted hearings
concerning the Forest Service proposals. The hearings were held on
consecutive days by the House Forests and Forest Health Subcommittee, chaired
by Rep. Helen Chenoweth-Hage (R-Idaho), and the House Energy and Mineral
Resources Subcommittee, chaired by Rep. Barbara Cubin (R-Wyoming).
Several members of both subcommittees extensively grilled both Forest Service
Chief Mike Dombeck and Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Natural
Resources and Environment Jim Lyons. Of primary concern was the congressional
perception that agency plans had been formulated solely with input from
the Heritage Forest Campaign, which the subcommittee leadership characterized
as “extreme environmentalists.” Both subcommittees charged that President
Clinton’s announcement and the Forest Service proposals were issued without
the advice or opinions of anyone except the few members of the Heritage
Forest Campaign.
Forest Service Position
Agency representatives maintained that they have held numerous town
meetings across the country and received thousands of public comments concerning
roadless areas. Apparently many of the comments suggested the agency provide
additional protection for roadless areas. Reportedly, the Forest Service
plans to utilize a science-based framework for dealing with roads within
the national forests, and to have the decision of whether to build, maintain
or close roads made at the local level. Also indicated was the need to
satisfy maintenance requirements for the existing road system at an estimated,
but yet unfunded, cost of $8.4 billion. The Forest Service prefers to invest
resources in projects with greater public support and fewer environmental
impacts than building roads in roadless areas. There was also the hope
registered that new regulations would eliminate the millions of dollars
expended annually to satisfy appeals and litigation costs.
Conclusion
Although it is extremely unlikely that mining or oil and gas activities
will take place on Forest Service roadless areas, there is concern that
geologists have access to national forest lands for scientific research
and to conduct field studies. However, it must be recognized that entry
onto any forest service land for any purpose is only with permission from
the management of the particular forest. There have been several instances
where field party leaders were unaware that specific permission was necessary,
especially where there had been unrestricted access in the past. Many of
the access problems have come from a lack of understanding of increased
Forest Service responsibilities. Their agency is now faced with much greater
emphasis on the protection of drinking water sources; areas of high or
unique biodiversity; areas of cultural or historic importance; areas of
unique or important seasonal habitat for wildlife, fish, and plant species;
and the need to provide protection against invasive, noxious, or exotic
pest or weed species. Therefore the agency has become more accountable
for monitoring activities on their lands.
For those interested in following the topic, keep an eye on the Forest Service road management website at http://www.fs.fed.us/news/roads/. With the release of the draft EIS, the accompanying comment period, the promised series of public meetings, and the intense congressional interest, the structure of the agency’s final rule is not yet forged.
This article is reprinted with permission from The Professional Geologist, published by the American Institute of Professional Geologists. AGI gratefully acknowledges that permission.
Please send any comments or requests for information to the AGI Government Affairs Program.
Contributed by John Dragonetti, AGI Government Affairs.
Posted June 7, 2000
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