What the end of the ‘roadless rule’ could mean for Utah’s national forests
The U.S. Department of Food and Agriculture recently announced it would try to roll back the “roadless rule,” a decades-old policy that prevents road construction and logging on nearly 4 million acres of national forest in Utah. … Utah leaders celebrated the decision, with House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, calling it a “big win” for the state. But in Utah, proponents of the rule say it’s a vital tool for protecting the state’s forests, which in turn keep water clean, provide habitat for wildlife and allow recreation opportunities. “This rule protects almost half of the forest service land in Utah,” said Kate Groetzinger, communications director for the Center for Western Priorities. “This opens about half of Utah’s forest land to logging that has been previously protected. That can drastically change the feel of some of our most popular forests.”
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