FORESTS: Recreation, trade groups support effort to toss federal roadless rule
Scott Streater, E&E reporter
Greenwire: Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Two large recreation groups and a forest products trade association have joined the chorus of industry and government leaders calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a Clinton-era law blocking mining, road building and most other activities on roughly 58 million acres of national forestland.
The Pocatello, Idaho-based BlueRibbon Coalition and the California Association of 4 Wheel Drive Clubs (Cal4), both of which have been strong advocates for off-highway vehicle use and other activities on public lands, this week filed a "friend of the court" brief to the Supreme Court supporting two petitions by the state of Wyoming and the Colorado Mining Association asking the high court to strike down the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule.
They were joined in the so-called amici curiae brief by the Portland, Ore.-based American Forest Resource Council (AFRC), which represents the forest products industry throughout Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and California.
Wyoming and the CMA argued in formal court petitions last month that the Forest Service overstepped its authority in devising the roadless rule by essentially establishing de facto wilderness areas -- an authority reserved solely for Congress (Greenwire, May 18).
Specifically, both the state and the CMA want the Supreme Court to overturn a decision last year by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld the Clinton roadless rule and reversed U.S. District Judge Clarence Brimmer's finding that the nationwide rule did indeed create new wilderness and violated the National Environmental Policy Act (Greenwire, Oct. 21, 2011).
The Circuit Court in February rejected a request by Wyoming and CMA to rehear that case before a full panel of judges (Greenwire, Feb. 17).
"This fight has been going on for over a decade. BlueRibbon and Cal4 have been involved in every facet of the roadless litigation since the beginning, and we are resolved to stay that course," said Brian Hawthorne, public lands policy director for BlueRibbon, which has about 10,000 members. "We believe the Wyoming court correctly noted the legal flaws in the 2001 rule."
The Wyoming and CMA petitions followed the finalization last month of a Colorado roadless rule that Obama administration officials say is even stronger than the national rule. Colorado and Idaho are the only two states to pass state roadless rules under a George W. Bush administration petition plan that was later ruled unlawful.
Paul Seby, a Denver attorney who wrote the recent CMA petition, said a Supreme Court decision to throw out the federal roadless rule would not affect Colorado's rule because the Forest Service developed it using what he called proper rulemaking procedures. Seby said CMA wants to see the Forest Service develop specific state roadless rules like the ones finalized in Colorado and Idaho.
Hawthorne said he agrees.
"We also believe that the U.S. Forest Service needs to address 'roadless area' management through local planning, not through politically driven one-size-fits-all templates created in the White House," he said.
