What Is the Roadless Rule, and Why Does It Matter?
The Roadless Rule Protects Millions of Acres of Wild Forest. The Trump Administration Wants to Repeal It.
For 25 years, one federal rule has helped keep some of America’s wildest forests wild.
The Roadless Area Conservation Rule, adopted in 2001, was created to protect roughly 58.5 million acres of largely undeveloped national forest lands across the United States. That’s nearly one-third of the entire National Forest System.
The rule generally prohibits new road construction and commercial logging in designated “roadless” areas, with exceptions for things like public safety, certain wildfire prevention projects and other necessary activities. By keeping roads and large-scale development out, these protections help preserve wildlife habitat, watersheds, clean drinking water, recreation areas and some of the country’s largest remaining intact forest ecosystems.
Now, those protections are at risk.
The Trump administration has formally proposed repealing the 2001 Roadless Rule in its entirety. The U.S. Department of Agriculture argues that eliminating the rule would give local forest managers greater flexibility to reduce wildfire risk, manage forests and increase timber production.
But the government’s own environmental review acknowledges that increased road construction and timber harvesting could harm water quality, fisheries, wildlife, scenic landscapes and recreation, while fragmenting currently intact ecosystems.
If finalized, the proposal would remove federal Roadless Rule protections from roughly 44.7 million acres of national forest, potentially opening more of these public lands to roads, logging and other development.
And right now, the public has an opportunity to speak up.
The Forest Service is accepting public comments on the proposed repeal through October 6, 2026. Public comments become part of the official federal rulemaking record and give Americans a chance to tell the agency what they think should happen to these lands.
We’ve made it really easy to take action and make your voice heard. Just click the button below to get started.
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