Last Call for Forest Roads to Be, or Not to Be
Monday, April 7, 2008
Boise, ID – Roads -- to be or not to be? To paraphrase Shakespeare, "That is the question," and today is the last chance for members of the public to have a say on the proposed new rule for roadless National Forest land in Idaho.
The plan would allow roads and development on some forested acres, which is a hot-button issue for thousands of Idahoans. Their messages are being delivered to the U.S. Forest Service this morning. Holly Endersby, of the group Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, can list several reasons she wants roadless areas to remain undeveloped.
"The primary one is that those roadless areas are really nurseries for our very healthy big game species in this state."
To Endersby, pristine forests provide solitude, which is increasingly difficult to find in one of the fastest-growing states in the country. But not all the benefits of wilderness are found at the surface, she explains. Some are beneath the icy headwaters of the rivers and streams that run through it.
"Those roadless areas are extremely important for cold water fisheries like salmon, steelhead and bull trout, which are wrestling with healthy populations."
She adds roadless areas also provide natural filters to keep much of the state's drinking water clean. Those who want to see some National Forest land opened for development believe forests should generate at least some income, to help pay for maintaining them.
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