Trump Administration Proposes Rescinding Roadless Rule, Drawing Public Opposition
The Trump administration has proposed rescinding the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, a regulation that restricts road construction, reconstruction, and timber harvesting on nearly 45 million acres of National Forest land across the U.S., including approximately 6.4 million acres in Montana. The proposal, filed on August 18, has generated significant public opposition, as evidenced by a recent event in Bozeman where hunters, conservationists, and public lands advocates gathered to submit comments against the rescission. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is accepting public comments on the proposed change until September 21. Critics, including Scott Christensen, Executive Director of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition (GYC), argue that the administration's 30-day comment period is too brief for such a significant policy change, especially compared to the over year-long process and 1.6 million comments received when the rule was first instituted. 
