1. United States
2. N.C.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to STOP Rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule because it would open over **172,000 acres** of North Carolina’s most pristine national forest land to logging and roadbuilding, undermining their role in climate mitigation, biodiversity preservation, and community recreation. This move prioritizes timber interests over the proven benefits of standing, mature forests for climate resilience and ignores overwhelming public support for forest protections—**97.4%** of North Carolina commenters want these areas protected. ## North Carolina Forests and Climate North Carolina forests act as a vital buffer against climate change, sequestering nearly **1.3 trillion tons** of carbon and annually pulling **37.8 million metric tons** of CO₂ from the atmosphere—offsetting about **25%** of the state’s emissions. Logging, which is the third-largest source of carbon emissions in North Carolina, degrades this storage and resilience, making the region more vulnerable to extreme weather, loss of biodiversity, and water quality decline. ## The Truth About Fire Suppression Claims that rescinding the Roadless Rule benefits fire suppression are misleading: research shows roads are actually a major ignition source for wildfires, attracting human activity and increasing fire risk. The existing rule already allows limited roadbuilding for genuine emergency wildfire response and habitat management—there is no need to open these areas to large-scale logging and development to ensure fire safety. ## Forest Replanting and Timber Interests Annual tree planting efforts in North Carolina are considerable, with **over 17 million seedlings** planted on **37,492 acres** between 2022-2024 through state-supported programs. However, replacing mature, diverse forests with monoculture tree plantations significantly reduces the land’s ability to withstand climate threats and store carbon[6]. Even optimistic projections show planted pine stands sequester only **23 tons of carbon per acre over 10 years**, vastly outclassed by standing, older forests. The drive to rescind the Roadless Rule is a timber play—not authentically motivated by fire management. ## Roadless Rule Is a Conservation Success Since 2001, the Roadless Rule has successfully kept “wild forests wild,” protecting North Carolina’s heritage—from mountain streams to elk habitats—for recreation, wildlife, and local economies. Rescinding it would mean risking **83%** of North Carolina’s inventoried roadless areas for logging, development, and mining, with no scientific justification that this would improve wildfire management or forest health. Rescinding the Roadless Rule is a short-sighted timber play that will degrade North Carolina’s forests, worsen climate change, threaten biodiversity, and ignore the wishes of the vast majority of North Carolinians.