[at-l] Fw: Roadless Area Policy -- ACTION ALERT

["Coosa" <coosa@alltel.net>]

I don't know who did or didn't get this info, so I'm sending it to the at-l,
Coosa


>Dear GFW members:
>Please take action on the following forwarded e-mail!  As you can see, one
>of the public meetings will take place in Atlanta on November 30. The
>meeting is at 6:30 PM, and will be at a hotel near the airport.  I'll
follow
>up with more details later.  If you can't attend, please make your opinions
>known by mail. Hope to see ya'll there.
>
>Brent Martin
>>
>>To:  Southern Appalachian Forest Friends
>>From:  Carl Silverstein
>>
>>************************************************
>>ACTION ALERT -- Please Support the Roadless Area Policy!
>>DEADLINE FOR COMMENTS -- December 20, 1999
>>
>>On October 13, 1999,  President Clinton made an historic announcement
>>directing the Forest Service to develop a policy to protect roadless areas
>>on National Forest Lands.  This is our single best opportunity to gain
>>protection for some 750,000-plus acres of undeveloped, backcountry lands
in
>>the Southern Appalachians, and as much as 60 million acres nationwide,
>>before the end of the Clinton Administration.  Public support is
critically
>>important to achieving these conservation goals!
>>
>>WRITTEN COMMENTS -- Written comments are needed in support of an
>>administrative rulemaking process to develop and adopt the Roadless Area
>>Policy. The official 60-day comment period for the scoping process is
>>underway and comments must to be received by the Forest Service by
December
>>20, 1999.
>>
>>PUBLIC MEETINGS -- There will be public meetings on the policy on November
>>30, in Atlanta, Georgia and December 9 in Washington, DC.  We need lots of
>>voices there as well as at the local forest-level meetings that will be
>>scheduled.  Log on to http://www.safc.org/ for details about these
meetings
>>or call toll free 888-836-7378.
>>
>>At a minimum, comments should stress the importance of protecting all
>>roadless areas and should support the President's initiative.  Longer
>>comment letters may also address the range of protection options being
>>considered by the Forest Service.  Once the draft Environmental Impact
>>Statement (EIS) is prepared and made available, there will be further
>>opportunity for public comment on the substance of the EIS.  At this stage
>>of the process, focusing primarily on developing an EIS that studies a
>>range of strong protection alternatives for all roadless areas is best.
>>Please consider making the following points in your letter:
>>
>>1.  Endorse the administrative rulemaking process and the EIS process
>>enthusiastically as the best option for protecting our critically
important
>>roadless areas, including those identified in the Southern Appalachian
>>Assessment;
>>
>>2.  Emphasize immediate protection of inventoried roadless areas,
including
>>prohibiting road construction, all logging, mining, or other damaging
>>activities in these areas; and
>>
>>3.  Support the need for special management and protection of roadless
>>areas not yet officially inventoried, especially including smaller areas
>>adjacent to inventoried areas or areas of ecological importance.
>>
>>MORE BACKGROUND
>>
>>The Forest Service proposes to examine alternatives for protecting
>>inventoried roadless areas by immediately restricting certain activities.
>>The currently proposed alternatives include:
>>
>>  *  prohibiting road construction or reconstruction in the remaining
>>unroaded portions of inventoried roadless areas;
>>
>>  *  prohibiting road construction and commercial timber harvest in
>>unroaded portions of the inventoried roadless areas;
>>
>>  *  prohibit all activities that do not contribute to maintaining or
>>enhancing the ecological values of roadless areas.
>>
>>The EIS will also examine alternatives for establishing direction for long
>>term management of inventoried roadless areas, in addition to the
>>protections afforded through the immediate prohibitions discussed above.
>>
>>It will also determine whether to protect uninventoried roadless areas
and,
>>if so, which areas to protect, and how much protection to afford.  The
>>additional management direction (beyond the immediate protection measures)
>>is proposed to be implemented through the forest planning process.  The
>>alternatives for this second part of the EIS include:
>>
>>  *  National procedures and criteria for inventoried roadless areas that
>>address how land managers at the forest plan level should manage
>>activities; and
>>
>>  *  Protection of the roadless character of uninventoried roadless areas
>>in the form of  the national procedures and criteria to maintain the
>>roadless character of areas which are:
>>
>>    - selected based on their ecological characteristics;
>>    - existing roadless areas on national forest land at least 1000 acres
>>and contiguous to unroaded areas of 5000 acres or more;
>>    -existing roadless areas of at least 1000 acres.
>>
>>Finally, the Tongass National Forest in Alaska is at risk to be exempted
>>from the protections of the policy.  Activists in our region are also
>>encouraged to comment in support of including the Tongass National Forest,
>>one of our greatest national treasures, in the roadless area protection
policy.
>>
>>Please submit your written comments by mail or electronically to:
>>
>>USDA Forest Service-CAET
>>Attention: Roadless Areas NOI
>>PO Box 221090
>>Salt Lake City, UT  84122
>>roadless/wo_caet-slc@fs.fed.us
>>
>>Please cc:
>>
>>Elizabeth Estill, Regional Forester
>>USDA Forest Service
>>1720 Peachtree Road NW
>>Atlanta  GA 30309
>>elizabeth.estill/r8@fs.fed.us
>>
>>Please make sure to send a copy of your comments to your member of
Congress
>>and your Senators.  It is imperative that we build support for this policy
>>in Congress.  We'd also like to know what you're saying so please send
>>SELC/SAFC a copy of your comments, too.
>>
>>THANKS FOR YOUR HELP ON THIS IMPORTANT EFFORT!
>>
>>Prepared by the Southern Environmental Law Center
>>for the Southern Appalachian Forest Coalition
>>November 1999
>>
>>********************************
>>Carl J. Silverstein
>>Southern Appalachian Forest Coalition
>>46 Haywood Street  --  Suite 323
>>Asheville  NC  28801-2838
>>
>>(828) 252-9223
>>(828) 252-9074  fax
>>
>>web address:  http://www.safc.org
>>
>>
>
>

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