Action Alert: Keep the Backcountry Roadless

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) filed its notice of intent to rescind the 2001 Roadless Rule, which is a critical policy that has protected 45 million acres of National Forests (aka public lands) from road construction, logging, mining, OHV activity, ski resort expansion, and development (including potential maintenance roads to gondola towers in Little Cottonwood Canyon.)

At Wasatch Backcountry Alliance, we aim to protect the existing balance between undeveloped and developed terrain in the Central Wasatch. After all, if we wanted to ski on roads, we’d call ourselves the Wasatch Cross-country Alliance!

I say that jokingly, since cross-country skiing is also a vital form of human-powered winter recreation that WBA advocates for. Many of us got our start on skinny skis (myself included), whether it was wobbling around the Foothills on old 3-pin setups with leather boots and rubber snake skins, or cruising the groomed nordic tracks.

Joking aside, the Roadless Rule is essential to maintaining that balance and protecting cherished backcountry zones, many of which are Inventoried Roadless Areas (IRAs): White Pine, Cardiff, Days, Silver Fork, Mineral, north-facing terrain off Raymond and Gobblers, almost all of upper BCC from Reynolds to the Monitors, Mt. Aire, and Lambs Canyon. And that’s just the Central Wasatch! Huge swaths in the Uintas, La Sals, American Fork, Timpanogos Foothills, Cascade, Provo Peak, and Ogden Valley are all at risk. View the areas at risk in the Wasatch based on the USFS dataset.

Alarmed? You should be! Speak up today to protect our local backcountry! Visit the links below to learn what this could mean for ski zones across America and submit your comment through Winter Wildlands Alliance!

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What about wildfires?

WBA supports logical efforts to make the Wasatch more resilient to wildfires. Fuel (vegetation) treatments, such as prescribed burns, lop-and-scatter, and slash-pile burning, are already allowed in IRAs. These treatments are already underway in Parleys, Lambs, Millcreek, and American Fork Canyons, with Big Cottonwood scheduled for next year and Little Cottonwood to follow.

WBA is an advocate for these fuel treatments- not only do they make our mountains more resilient to wildfires, but they also improve forest health and improve the quality of backcountry skiing terrain. Summit Park is a successful example of this! WBA has had conversations with the USFS’s Salt Lake Ranger District as well as private landowners to discuss ways in which WBA can support fuel treatment.

Those wanting to rescind the Roadless Rule argue that building more roads and expanding commercial logging will reduce catastrophic wildfires, but in reality, 85% of wildfires are human-caused, and most of them start near roadways.

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WBA has long supported the Roadless Rule

Back in 2019, the State of Utah under Governor Gary Herbert’s leadership, pushed for a state-specific Roadless Rule, which would have given the state control over roadless areas. This was yet another iteration of Utah’s efforts to dismantle public lands.

Wasatch Backcountry Alliance along with Outdoor Alliance, Salt Lake Climbers Alliance, Friends of Indian Creek, and Mountain Trails Foundation collectively signed a letter opposing any Utah exemption to the Roadless Rule and succeeded!

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Speak up to keep our backcountry roadless!

Submit your comment to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins by September 19 to share why these lands matter to our community. Although the decision ultimately rests with USDA, our members of Congress can influence the outcome, so be sure to forward your comments to them as well.

Together, we can make a difference, like when the sale of public lands was removed from the reconciliation bill thanks to enough public opposition. Let’s be loud and protect our public lands once again!