Roadless Forest Areas Now Under Vilsack
By David A. Fahrenthold, Washington Post, May 29, 2009 [here]
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today issued a temporary order governing development in “roadless” areas of national forests, requiring all new projects to be approved by him personally.
Vilsack’s order, which will be in effect for a year, is the latest turn in an eight-year-old battle over 58.5 million acres of pristine woods. President Bill Clinton made these areas off-limits in 2001, but President George W. Bush effectively reopened some in 2005. That led to a series of court cases that ultimately replaced the national policy with a patchwork of regional rules.
Vilsack, whose purview includes the U.S. Forest Service, did today what environmental groups had been urging: call a “timeout.” … [more]