If you were responsible for managing a natural park such as
Yellowstone, would you support or oppose road-building plans to
provide more people with access to the backcountry

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Request for Question Clarification by tutuzdad-ga on 20 Mar 2003 18:36 PST

Are you looking for a one word answer, as this is what your question implies?

"In 1998, Forest Service Chief Michael Dombeck stated that roadless
lands have values beyond wilderness. Dombeck bolstered his words by
proposing an overhaul of the forest transportation system including a
temporary halt to most road construction on national forest roadless
areas.

Dombeck’s vision is to develop a road system that "meets the needs of
local people while minimizing, and reversing, environmental impacts
such as erosion, landslides, and degradation of wildlife habitat and
water quality." The "time out" comes as the prospect of maintaining a
huge, ailing road system compels the Forest Service to metamorphose
from a timber-cutting Cyclops to a broad-visioned agency with focus on
restoring and sustaining healthy forests, wildlife populations, and
watersheds."  from Halt to Roadbuilding.  1998.
< http://www.greateryellowstone.org/roads_moratorium_win98nl.html >

As a result, I would be against building roads, for the following
reasons:

1) "Roads slice through ecosystems, fragmenting wildlife habitat and
severing lifelines between preserved areas"

2) "When built on steep, unstable slopes, roads dramatically increase
the risk of landslides, erosion, and stream siltation. "

3) "Road building and logging in large roadless areas disqualifies
them from designation as permanent Wilderness."

4) We cannot afford to maintain the roads we already have <
http://www.taxpayer.net/forest/lostintheforest/policies.htm >

5) A 1997 study by Forest Service and university scientists concluded
that roadless areas in the Columbia River Basin contain the healthiest
populations of imperilled species, the best fisheries and watersheds,
and some of the highest value recreation resources. In contrast, the
study found that the areas in the worst ecological shape, and with the
highest pricetags for restoration, are lands that had been most
heavily roaded.

6) Roadless areas support natural values that contribute to the
region’s socioeconomic structure.

7) Opening roadless areas opens them to oil and gas development.  We
should be focusing on alternative fuel development rather than
destroying our remaining natural resources

8)  Opening roadless areas opens them to the timber industry which
actually costs us money. (The Economic Case Against National Forest
Logging
<http://www.forestadvocate.org/resources/economic_case.html> )

9)  Having wilderness areas is an attraction also to tourists

Need any more reasons?

Thanks for asking.

acorn-ga

Oppose