Roadless Rule rescission could impact 587,000 acres in the Bighorn Mountains

The USDA Forest Service is accepting public comment through Friday, Sept. 19, on a proposal to begin the process of rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule, which applies to nearly 45 million acres of the nearly 60 million acres of inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System.

An interactive map provided by Trout Unlimited, which opposes the rescission of the roadless rule, shows the potential to impact 587,000 acres of the Bighorn National Forest where road construction or reconstruction has been prohibited for more than two decades.

Brooke L. Rollins, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, announced the opening of the public comment period on August 27, 2025, saying, “We are one step closer to common sense management of our national forest lands.” 

Rollins called it a “critical step forward” in President Trump’s commitment to restore local decision-making to federal land managers to empower them to do what’s necessary to protect Ameria’s forests and communities from devastating destruction from fires.

“This administration is dedicated to removing burdensome, outdated, one-size-fits-all regulations that not only put people and livelihoods at risk but also stifle economic growth in rural America,” Rollins said. “It is vital that we properly manage our federal lands to create healthy, resilient and productive forests for generations to come. We look forward to hearing directly from the people and communities we serve as we work together to implement productive and common sense policy for forest land management.”

The USDA Forest Service published a notice August 29, 2025, in the Federal Register, seeking public comment on its intention to develop an environmental impact statement for the proposed rescission of the rule. The notice details the reasons for rescinding the rule, the potential effects on people and resources and how national forests and grasslands are managed. 

“For nearly 25 years, the Roadless Rule has frustrated land managers and served as a barrier to action – prohibiting road construction, which has limited wildfire suppression and active forest management,” said Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz. “The forests we know today are not the same as the forests of 2001. They are dangerously overstocked and increasingly threatened by drought, mortality, insect-borne disease and wildfire. It’s time to return land management decisions where they belong – with local Forest Service experts who best understand their forests and communities. We encourage participation in the upcoming public process. Your input will help to build a stronger, safer future for our forests and the communities that depend on these forests for jobs, recreation and clean water.”

The USDA said in the release that the proposal aligns with President Trump’s Executive Order 14192, Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation, to get rid of overcomplicated, burdensome barriers that hamper American business and innovation. It also supports Executive Order 14153, Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential, which directs the Forest Service to exempt the Tongass National Forest from the 2001 Roadless Rule.

Opposition

Conservation groups have come out strongly against the proposed rescission, citing its potential impact on forestlands and their recreational uses.

“For nearly 25 years, the Roadless Rule has safeguarded America’s backcountry lands that are home to 70 percent of our native trout and salmon, that protect drinking water for millions and that offer some of the finest hunting and fishing opportunity in the world,” Chris Wood, president and CEO of Trout Unlimited, said in a statement. “We would, honestly, welcome a transparent, collaborative process to determine if tweaks to the rule would allow us to better protect the values of roadless areas while also better protecting communities of people at risk of catastrophic fire. Rather than rescinding the Roadless Rule and allowing that chaos to unfold, we encourage the Forest Service to work with stakeholders to develop solutions that continue to protect roadless areas and intact fish and wildlife habitat.”

According to Trout Unlimited, the Roadless Rule conserves backcountry public lands and waters while providing flexibility for the U.S. Forest Service to steward these high-value landscapes through active management. Originally promulgated in response to the growing backlog of costs associated with maintaining the more than 386,000 miles of roads spanning across the national forest system, the Roadless Rule has become an effective and popular mechanism for conserving important backcountry fish and wildlife habitat, Trout Unlimited said in a release.

“The Roadless Rule balances active forest management with the conservation of our last, best fish and wildlife habitat. Roadless areas offer irreplaceable backcountry hunting and fishing for mule deer, elk and native trout, just to name a few opportunities,” said Corey Fisher, Public Land Policy Director. “Rolling back the Roadless Rule risks trading clean water and healthy fisheries for little economic benefit, while saddling future generations with the bill for more roads, maintenance and wildfire risk. Rather than remove a key conservation tool, the Forest Service should work with local communities to steward these last, best places because once they’re gone, they’re gone forever.”

Roadless areas, accounting for only 2% of the land base of the United States, provide unparalleled outdoor access for hunters and anglers, allow for grazing, motorized trails, energy and resource management activities and power the restoration economy. On national forests across the western United States, one in five acres treated to reduce the risk of wildfire has been in roadless areas. Meanwhile, 70 percent of roadless areas are home to native trout or salmon, making these public lands irreplaceable to sustain coldwater fisheries. 

Within the Bighorns, Fisher said a non-inclusive list of watersheds with important trout fisheries include the South Fork of the Tongue River, Medicine Lodge Creek, Shell Creek and North Piney Creek. 

“All of these streams classified as red or blue-ribbon fisheries that flow through roadless areas and/or headwater tributaries are in roadless areas on the Bighorn National Forest,” said Fisher. 

Comment period

The public is invited to comment on the potential effects of the proposal to guide the development of the environmental impact statement. 

Comments must be submitted no later than September 19, 2025, via the Federal Register at www.federalregister.gov/documents /2025/08/29/2025-16581/special-areas-roadless-area-conservation-national-forest-system-lands.

Public comments will be considered during the development of the draft environmental impact statement. Additional opportunities to comment will occur as the rulemaking process continues.