The United States Department of Agriculture on Monday announced that it will rescind a decades-old rule that protects 58.5 million acres of national forestland from road construction and timber harvesting. The USDA, which oversees the U.S. Forest Service, said it will eliminate the 2001 “Roadless Rule” which established lasting protection for specific wilderness areas within the nation’s national forests. Research has found that building roads can fragment habitats, disrupt ecosystems, and increase erosion and sediment pollution in drinking water, among other potentially harmful outcomes. In a statement, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins described the rule — which applies to about 30% of national forestland — as outdated and overly restrictive. … More than 40 states are home to areas protected by the rule. In California, that encompasses about 4.4 million acres across 21 national forests, including the Angeles, Tahoe, Inyo, Shasta-Trinity and Los Padres national forests.

Other public lands and waters news:

• E&E News by Politico: Senate referee rules out public land sales in megabill
• The Colorado Sun (Denver): Land and Water Conservation Fund cuts threaten Colorado projects​
• Source NM (Santa Fe): Public lands protesters picket Western governors’ conference
• The Sacramento Bee (Calif.): Bill could privatize Lake Tahoe beach, Sacramento wildlife preserve and more
• KCRA (Sacramento, Calif.): California Republican Kevin Kiley opposes sale of public land near Tahoe, Yosemite