09.04.01

Cantwell Criticizes the Administration’s Attempt to Avoid Public Comment on Plan to Change Roadless Forest Protection Rule

WASHINGON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) said today that the Bush Administration’s attempt to alter the Roadless Forest Protection Rule with minimal public input has failed.

"The Administration did not hold a single public meeting about its proposal to weaken the federal rule that protects some of America’s most pristine national forests," Cantwell said. "If Administration officials were trying to keep the American people from learning the intent of this proposed rulemaking and commenting in a meaningful way, they failed. Nearly 2 million people submitted comments."

The Roadless Forest Protection Rule currently precludes new road construction on more than 58 million acres of public land, and does more than any previous measure to protect America’s few remaining roadless forests from further development by oil, gas, timber and coal companies. The rule preserves open space for recreational uses, including hunting, fishing, mountain biking and snowmobiling; protects watersheds that are sources of clean drinking water; and keeps intact vital habitat for fish and wildlife. The Bush Administration’s proposal would roll back forest management to a forest-by-forest approach, which could lead to further development.

The Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which the Forest Service published in the Federal Register, established a 60-day comment period that will end September 10, 2001. The Forest Service has held no public meetings and has done almost nothing else to let the public know this process is under way or to encourage public review and comment of the proposed changes. Cantwell said any proposal to change the rule should undergo the same level of public scrutiny to which the rule itself was subjected during the initial rulemaking process.

The process used by the Forest Service to establish this rule in the first place included a total of 600 public meetings in local communities nationwide (180 of those were held during the comparable comment period of the initial rulemaking process) and 1.6 million public comments - the most extensive public outreach in the history of the National Environmental Policy Act. There were 60,000 comments from Washington state alone, and 96 percent of those favored strong protection for roadless national forests.

"Clearly, protecting America’s roadless forests from further development is something that the American people care about," Cantwell said. "More people commented during this process than during the initial rulemaking. I want to thank each of them for their participation in this important public process, regardless of where they stand on the issue."