Martin Heinrich

All five members of New Mexico’s all-Democratic Congressional delegation have signed on to a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins that requests the state be excluded from the Trump administration’s proposed repeal of the so-called Roadless Rule. The 24-year-old Roadless Area Conservation Rule … includes about 1.6 million acres of land in New Mexico, which impacts all five of the state’s national forests. However, the Gila National Forest has the most protected acreage. Rollins … contends the rule change will give state and local experts the freedom to make decisions about forest management and allow the logging industry to grow. New Mexico’s Congressional delegation sent a letter to Rollins on Sept. 19, after three weeks of public comment ended. The delegation asked the secretary to exclude New Mexico from the rollback, citing negative impacts to the state’s vulnerability to wildfires, public safety and the outdoor recreation economy.