PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                        March 2, 2006

Contact:      Matthew Fisher, ONRC, (503) 283-6343 x205

Laura Etherton, OSPIRG, (503) 807-6409

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Over 260,000 Americans Send Message to Bush: Protect Roadless Forests

 Olympians Join Effort to Reinstate 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule and Protect Roadless Wildlands From Logging and Drilling

PORTLAND, OR - Conservationists today announced the submission of a petition to the federal government signed by over 260,000 Americans, including over 100 current and former Olympic athletes.  The goal of the petition is to re-instate the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, a wildly popular measure that protected over 58 million acres of unspoiled land in America’s national forests from logging and development.

"The repeal of the Roadless Area Conservation Rule has senselessly jeopardized the future of America's last wild forests,” observed Mike Richter, three-time Olympian and former National Hockey League star. “The petition filed today amounts to the American people saying no; no to greed, special interests, and the profit of the few at the expense of our common good.”

The petition was filed under the Administrative Procedures Act (APA). The APA allows citizens to request the government issue, amend, or revoke federal rules.

“Americans want to see these last unspoiled roadless forests protected as a haven for wildlife and a place for our families to get outdoors and enjoy hunting, fishing, hiking, and camping,” added Matthew Fisher, Wildlands Advocate for Oregon Natural Resources Council. “Here in Oregon these pristine wildlands fuel our important tourism and recreation industries.”

Per capita, more people from Oregon signed the petition than any other state. 

Independent polling indicates that a strong majority of Americans support the 2001 roadless rule, which was replaced by the Bush administration in 2005.  The policy reversal, one of the administration’s most controversial environmental decisions, affects some 58.5 million acres of roadless areas in national forests, including nearly 2 million acres of pristine land in Oregon.

Backers say the unusual step of an APA petition was necessary after the Bush administration failed to account for the public’s overwhelming support for the 2001 Roadless Rule.  In the most recent public comment period on the rule, 1.7 million Americans expressed support for protecting wildlands but were largely ignored by the Bush administration.

This week the US Forest Service announced plans to begin logging in roadless backcountry areas within the Siskiyou Mountains in Southern Oregon.

In a letter to the Forest Service, the over 100 local and national conservation groups who organized the drive, including Oregon Natural Resources Council, demanded a prompt response to the petition as required by law. The groups said the government not only ignored strong public support for the rule, but they may have skirted federal environmental protection laws. These legal violations are the subject of two court challenges.

“Oregonians who value fish, wildlife, clean drinking water, and the legacy we leave for our children have a huge stake in the outcome of this debate,” said Laura Etherton of the Oregon State Public Interest Research Group (OSPIRG).  “These roadless wildlands should be preserved for our children and grandchildren, not opened up to bulldozers, chainsaws, and log trucks.”

Today’s announcement comes as pressure mounts in Congress, the courts, and the general public to reinstate the protections that limited logging, drilling, and other destructive activities in pristine roadless wild forests.

A Senate bill will be introduced shortly by Senators Maria Cantwell (WA) and Jeff Bingaman (NM) to codify the 2001 roadless rule into federal law. Last July, 145 members of Congress introduced a similar bill in the House.  In addition a federal suit has been filed on behalf of three state attorneys general and two governors from four western states -- California, New Mexico, Washington and Oregon - challenging the legality of the Bush policy. Montana and Maine joined last week filing a brief in support of the suit. A second legal challenge was also filed on behalf of 20 conservation groups. 

A copy of the letter submitted by over 100 groups supporting the petition drive, a list of Olympians who signed, and more information on the roadless rule and roadless areas can be found at www.ourforests.org <http://www.ourforests.org/>.

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