Agriculture Department, Forest Service
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA or Department) is proposing to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (2001 Roadless Rule), which established broad prohibitions on road construction, road reconstruction, and timber harvesting within inventoried roadless areas on National Forest System lands. The intent of this proposed action is to reduce regulatory burden and return decisionmaking for the management of inventoried roadless areas to the land management planning process at the individual national forest level. Rescission of the national-level prohibitions provides responsible officials with flexibility to better guide management of National Forest System lands and respond to changing local resource conditions. The Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974, as amended by the National Forest Management Act of 1976, and the associated land management planning processes and plans are the appropriate and effective mechanisms to guide sustainable, integrated management of the resources within the plan areas in the context of the broader landscape, giving due consideration to the relative values of the various resources in particular areas. The USDA invites public comment on this proposed rule, the associated draft environmental impact statement, and cost benefit analysis, which are being published simultaneously.
Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Agriculture Forest Service 36 CFR Part 294 RIN 0596-AD66 AGENCY: Forest Service, Agriculture (USDA). ACTION: Proposed rule; request for public comment. SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA or Department) is proposing to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (2001 Roadless Rule), which established broad prohibitions on road construction, road reconstruction, and timber harvesting within inventoried roadless areas on National Forest System lands. The intent of this proposed action is to reduce regulatory burden and return decisionmaking for the management of inventoried roadless areas to the land management planning process at the individual national forest level. Rescission of the national-level prohibitions provides responsible officials with flexibility to better guide management of National Forest System lands and respond to changing local resource conditions. The Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974, as amended by the National Forest Management Act of 1976, and the associated land management planning processes and plans are the appropriate and effective mechanisms to guide sustainable, integrated management of the resources within the plan areas in the context of the broader landscape, giving due consideration to the relative values of the various resources in particular areas. The USDA invites public comment on this proposed rule, the associated draft environmental impact statement, and cost benefit analysis, …
Citation: 91 FR 53827
