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TUESDAY, JUNE 10, 2003

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will reinstate a Clinton administration regulation to limit road-building and logging on 60 million acres of roadless areas in national forests but will allow modifications.

USDA will allow state governors to seek exemptions to the rule. The agency will also propose a separate rule to reopen parts of the 17 million-acre Tongass National Forest in Alaska to logging. Officials plan to seek exemptions for the 5.7 million-acre Chugach National Forest in Alaska as well.

Some tribes supported the roadless rule, citing a need to protect areas used for hunting, gathering and other activities. Others, including the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho and Alaska Native corporations, opposed the rule because they have timber interests.

The roadless rule was finalized in the last days of the Clinton administration. A lawsuit by the Kootenai Tribe and industry interests forced its suspension but it was eventually reinstated.

Get the Story:
Roadless-rule exemptions sought (The Anchorage Daily News 6/10)
USDA to Propose More Forest Access (The Washington Post 6/10)
Proposal allows exemptions to forest-development ban (The Denver Post 6/10)
Bush to Prohibit Building Roads Inside Forests (The New York Times 6/10)
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Relevant Documents:
USDA RETAINS NATIONAL FORESTS ROADLESS AREA CONSERVATION RULE (USDA 6/9)

Relevant Decision:
KOOTENAI TRIBE OF IDAHO v. VENEMAN, No. 01-35472/76 (9th Cir. December 12, 2002)

Relevant Links:
Roadless Forest Plan - http://roadless.fs.fed.us

Related Stories:
Court overturns tribe's injunction on rules (12/13)
Decisions affect national forests (5/17)
Court voids Alaska logging permits (2/14)
Agreement reached on timber sale (2/8)
Judge stops Bush-ordered timber sale (1/9)
Suit filed to stop timber sale (12/19)
Roadless forest rules back in court (10/16)
Tsimshian Tribe opposes timber sale (8/15)
Judge blocks controversial forest rules (5/11)
Decision on forest rules is big news (5/7)
Controversial forest plan delayed (2/6)
Roadless forest plan draws fire (1/8)