Crossing the finish line for roadless National Forests

Pick up a copy of this week’s New Yorker and see our ad calling for quick action to save America’s last remaining roadless forests.  NRDC joined Earthjustice and a host of other allies in this direct appeal to President Obama.  We’re urging him to fully uphold and embrace the 2001 Roadless Rule, intended to protect 58.5 million acres of sensitive National Forest lands from logging and road building. (Click the images below to see larger PDF versions).

We know that the president recognizes the importance of full protections for roadless areas.  As a senator, he supported the 2001 Roadless Rule, and during his presidential campaign, Senator Obama said he would be “proud to support and defend” the rule in a League of Conservation Voters candidate questionnaire. And this May, the Obama administration took an important first step toward unraveling the sticky Bush legacy that still threatens our national forests.

But the job isn’t done. The Bush administration undermined the rule and started timber sales that still threaten untouched National Forest valleys today. Until President Obama puts his administration fully behind the 2001 Roadless Rule protections, pristine old growth stands like those in the Tongass rainforest in Alaska could be sold to timber companies almost without warning. So the time is now for the President to fulfill his promise.