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FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – The U.S. Forest Service is present accepting comments connected a projected rescission that could beryllium the reply to Californians' occurrence concerns - opening up wood lands and reducing the substance load.
If passed, the determination could lend to thinner forests and trim effect times by expanding firefighters' entree to wood roads.
The existent 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule establishes prohibitions connected caller roadworthy construction, reconstruction, and timber harvesting on astir 45 cardinal acres of nationalist forests and grasslands, including 4,416,000 acres successful California.
In the Sierra National Forest, fractional of the 172,000 acres of the Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA) bash not let roadworthy operation and reconstruction - a interest that has been connected the minds of galore arsenic the Garnet Fire rages done the Sierra.
In fact, a petition calling for the removal of the Sierra National Forest's Forest Supervisor, Dean Gould, states that "Overgrown roads hold firefighting effect times, putting lives and homes successful danger."
In summation to opening up roads and reducing effect times, the rescission would besides region limits connected logging, opening up the accidental for thinner forests.
The Garnet Fire burns successful the McKinley Grove country of the Sierra National Forest, Calif., connected Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)"With the [current] deficiency of logging and grazing, [forests] are wholly overgrown, overpopulated with trees and vegetation to the constituent wherever a beauteous wood is present a disgusting overgrown eyesore with dormant trees everyplace and becoming imaginable disasters waiting to happen! Log it, graze it, oregon ticker it burn!" 1 of the petition's comments read.
Comments connected the projected rescission volition beryllium accepted until Friday, Sept. 19. Comments tin beryllium submitted electronically here. Hardcopy letters tin beryllium submitted by message to the Director, Ecosystem Management Coordination, 201 14th Street SW, Mailstop 1108, Washington, DC 20250-1124.
