Environmental Victory: roadless rule is back!
You may recall some years back that the Clinton administration instituted the Roadless Area Conservation Rule that protected some 58 million acres of unspoiled forest land from development. That rule, to no-one's great surprise, was rolled back this past May by the Bush administration.
That action spurred Washington's very own Jay Inslee and a group of House members to put forth the Roadless Area Conservation Act, which would codify into law the Clinton-era rule. The action also spurred a coalition of four State Attorneys General and 20 environmental groups to file suit, seeking to uphold the rule.
Today, all these supporters of the environment scored a victory when federal Judge Elizabeth Laporte upheld the Roadless Rule, throwing out the Bush administration's plan to re-allow development in those areas.
Of the defendants in the suit, the Judge wrote "Defendants are enjoined from taking any further action contrary to the Roadless Rule without undertaking environmental analysis consistent with this opinion."
Inslee thanked the court, saying "Pristine forests are national heirlooms that should belong to all Americans, not special interests. Thanks to the courts today, they're back in the hands of a grateful people who have an obligation to preserve them for generations to come."
Here in Washington state, this decision affects some two million acres of National Forest, more than 20% of the National Forest land in the state. For more information on the Roadless Area Conservation Act, see Jay Inslee's House webpage. For more information on today's court decision, you can read Judge Laporte's decision here [PDF].
UPDATE: This is what Christine Gregoire had to say about the ruling:
That action spurred Washington's very own Jay Inslee and a group of House members to put forth the Roadless Area Conservation Act, which would codify into law the Clinton-era rule. The action also spurred a coalition of four State Attorneys General and 20 environmental groups to file suit, seeking to uphold the rule.
Today, all these supporters of the environment scored a victory when federal Judge Elizabeth Laporte upheld the Roadless Rule, throwing out the Bush administration's plan to re-allow development in those areas.
Of the defendants in the suit, the Judge wrote "Defendants are enjoined from taking any further action contrary to the Roadless Rule without undertaking environmental analysis consistent with this opinion."
Inslee thanked the court, saying "Pristine forests are national heirlooms that should belong to all Americans, not special interests. Thanks to the courts today, they're back in the hands of a grateful people who have an obligation to preserve them for generations to come."
Here in Washington state, this decision affects some two million acres of National Forest, more than 20% of the National Forest land in the state. For more information on the Roadless Area Conservation Act, see Jay Inslee's House webpage. For more information on today's court decision, you can read Judge Laporte's decision here [PDF].
UPDATE: This is what Christine Gregoire had to say about the ruling:
"Today is a great day for Washington; I am very pleased with the decision of the court. Roadless areas contribute to our quality of life and our economy by providing clean water, fish and wildlife habitat along with recreational and business opportunities. During the public comment period for the 2001 Roadless Rule, Washingtonians submitted over 80,000 comments – 96% of which supported complete protection of all roadless areas on national forest lands in the state.The Governor's leadership is deeply appreciated.
"I am committed to exercising all options to protect the character of our roadless areas. We joined the lawsuit to protect these lands because the federal government should not have rescinded the 2001 rule without following the rulemaking requirements. We have also moved forward with the state-specific petition process and, after reviewing the court's decision, will carefully consider our next steps."
