WASHINGTON – US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced the USDA has taken the next step in the rulemaking process for rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule by opening a public comment period. …The USDA Forest Service is publishing a notice seeking public comment on its intention to develop an environmental impact statement for the proposed rescission of the rule. The notice details the reasons for rescinding the rule, the potential effects on people and resources, and how national forests and grasslands are managed. The USDA will publish the notice August 29, 2025. …While the rescission would apply to roadless areas in Alaska, state-specific rules for Colorado and Idaho would not be affected by the proposal. In total, the 2025 rescission would apply to nearly 45 million acres of the nearly 60 million acres of inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System. …The public is invited to comment no later than Sept. 19, 2025.
A collection of responses to the Roadless Rule announcement:
- Sierra Club: Trump Administration Attempt to Repeal Roadless Rule Met With Widespread Opposition
- Natural Resources Defense Council: Roadless Rule Remains a Shield Against Logging Threats to America’s Forests
- Center for Biological Diversity: Trump Administration Moves to Kill National Forest Roadless Rule
- Earthjustice: Earthjustice Responds to Trump Administration Attack on Cherished National Forests
- Greenpeace: Here we go again – Trump administration begins process to repeal the Roadless Rule