Conservation Groups Oppose State of Alaska Attempt to Weaken the Roadless Rule

Today, about 100 conservation groups sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue opposing the State of Alaska's petition for rulemaking to exempt the Tongass National Forest in Alaska from the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (the Roadless Rule).

Defenders of Wildlife Director of Federal Lands, Peter Nelson, issued the following statement:

“Alaska's controversial petition to exempt the Tongass National Forest, our largest temperate rainforest, from the Roadless Rule condemns this vital landscape and the wildlife within. Rather than pushing for taxpayer subsidized roadbuilding to clear-cut priceless ancient forests, the State of Alaska should focus on restoring the Tongass’s watersheds and salmon runs that form the backbone of the region’s economy.

“Accepting this attack on the Roadless Rule will certainly lead to protracted and costly controversy while setting a dangerous precedent for undermining popular protections for national forests, wildlife and watersheds across the country.”