A Trump administration decision to rescind the policy that protects 58 million acres of undeveloped forestland could endanger wildlife species, degrade rivers and impede wildfire mitigation

By Haleigh Martin

Across southwestern Oregon and northwestern California is some of the wildest undeveloped land in the lower 48 states. One could venture out into the woods for a week and never see another single human but would likely find fascinating plant life, trees that have survived numerous generations, birdsong filling the air and dozens of sneaky critters scurrying along the forest floor, and cold, clean water rushing through creeks and streams.

What we have here in our backyards is not an experience that every American gets to have.

Not everyone across the country has such ample access to public lands right outside of their front door. In fact, many people across the country may have to drive hours to get to their state’s one national forest.

There is a reason why the rivers in this corner of the country have some of the best salmon and steelhead runs in the country. There is a reason why people travel from states away to backpack and raft and camp. And there is a reason why many wildlife species populations have persevered here but have gone extinct in many other parts of the country. This region is unique in its wild nature.

Protection keeps places wild

This wild nature doesn’t just persist without protection. The vast wildlands of this region exist because people have fought for conservation of these landscapes. From the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act to the Wilderness Act to the Endangered Species Act, many policies in recent U.S. history have garnered the support of the public and decision-makers in order to keep the wild wild.

Unfortunately, those policies aren’t carved in stone. From time to time, folks in power will seek to revoke protections that keep them and their allies from exploiting and developing the very places many people have worked so hard to protect.

We are currently watching this play out with the proposed rollback of the 2001 Roadless Rule.

In late June, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said that the U.S. Forest Service would be rescinding the Roadless Rule — a conservation policy that protects 58 million acres of undeveloped backcountry forestland from logging, mining and road building.

Rollins, President Donald Trump, and other GOP supporters of the rollback have framed the rule as “overly restrictive,” claiming it impedes wildfire mitigation and local forest management. But researchers and folks who are familiar with the nation’s few remaining roadless forests caution that the opposite is true.

So much at stake

Eliminating the Roadless Rule would destroy some of the most cherished recreation areas, including 11,337 climbing routes, more than 1,000 whitewater paddling runs, 43,826 miles of trail, and 20,298 mountain biking trails as well as sections of the Continental Divide, Pacific Crest and Appalachian National Trails. It would also threaten drinking water sources, imperil wildlife species and their habitats, and cost taxpayers money.

Also, contrary to the Agriculture Department’s rationale, rescinding the rule would increase the risk of wildfires. New research now in peer review shows that from 1992 to 2024, wildfires were four times as likely to start in areas with roads than in roadless forest tracts.

For many of us in Southern Oregon and Northern California, we will see the direct impacts of this policy rollback right in our backyards.

I believe I can speak for myself and many others when I say that the forests, rivers, meadows and other wild spaces are what make this region so special. They offer recreation experiences like no other, they house some of the most unique wildlife and plant species in the country, they offer ample hunting and angling opportunities, and they are important spaces for many of us to escape to to unplug and recharge from the day-to-day world.

The contiguous wild spaces of this region and the nation are necessary for the future of many ecosystems, and rolling back the Roadless Rule to increase logging and resource extraction will undoubtedly cause more harm than good.

Roadless Area Conservation Act

Dozens of U.S. representatives and senators have signed onto the Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2025, which would codify the Roadless Rule so that only an act of Congress could roll it back. As we track the progress of that and an upcoming open comment period for public weigh-in, we will be offering routes of action you can take to let your elected officials and other decision makers know you value the Roadless Rule and all the wild spaces it serves to protect. Sign up for quick and easy action alerts at this link here.

Haleigh Martin is the communications manager for KS Wild.