News

Conservationists announce 'people’s public hearing' on rollback of Roadless Rule

Hiker enjoy view from 3,969-foot Looking Glass Rock in Pisgah National Forest.

By Lightning Reports, Published: April 11, 2026

The future of some of America’s last wild forests — including treasured landscapes in Western North Carolina — is at risk, say conservationists who announced a public hearing this month to air concerns about a significant rollback of the national forests’ Roadless Rule.

The “people’s public hearing” is scheduled for 6-8 p.m. Thursday, April 30, at Ecusta Brewing Co., 451 Ecusta Road, Brevard.

The U.S. Forest Service is proposing to roll back the 25-year-old Roadless Rule to make way for road building, logging and mining in the largest reduction of public land protections in its history. Meanwhile, the federal government has reduced transparency requirements, making it more difficult for forest advocates to speak up.

“These forests belong to all of us,” said MountainTrue Resilient Forests Director Josh Kelly. “If the federal government won’t hear from the people, we’ll create those opportunities ourselves. Western North Carolinians deserve a voice in decisions that will shape our forests for generations.”

Organizers say the event is a chance to learn more, make comments and stand with others who care deeply about the future of the public lands.

“We hope folks will come out and express what these backcountry gems mean for them and all others who enjoy their beauty and recreational opportunities,” said David Reid, National Forests Issue Chair for the N.C. Sierra Club.

In 2001, the U.S. Forest Service adopted the Roadless Area Conservation Rule to protect nearly 59 million acres of national forest lands from road building, logging and industrial development. Supported by overwhelming public input, the rule has safeguarded clean drinking water, wildlife habitat, and backcountry recreation opportunities for more than two decades.

Now, that protection is under serious threat, the conservationists say.

In June 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced plans to rescind the Roadless Rule, opening these lands to new roads, logging, and mining. If finalized, the rollback would affect nearly one-third of all national forest lands in the United States — including more than 150,000 acres in Pisgah and Nantahala national forests alone, South Mills River and Laurel Mountain.

Roadless areas are far more than lines on a map. They provide drinking water to tens of millions of Americans, store vast amounts of carbon that help slow global warming, and support thriving outdoor recreation economies.

“Roadless areas are our country’s beating heart of biodiversity — places where the wild is still wild,” said Will Harlan, Southeast Director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Wildlife — including hellbenders, warblers, and trout — depend on roadless areas, and we need them, too. They protect our drinking water and scenic views, and they safeguard a vital part of our heritage and humanity.”

About 15 percent of Pisgah and Nantahala national forests are Inventoried Roadless Areas — places like Linville Gorge, Craggy Mountain, the Black Mountains and the headwaters of the South Mills River, which supplies drinking water to 80,000 residents of Henderson County.

According to a Made x Mountains survey, outdoor recreation is a $5 billion industry in Western North Carolina, supporting roughly 48,000 jobs.

Importantly, the Roadless Rule already strikes a balance of allowances. These areas are not designated wilderness, and allow the Forest Service to carry out responsible stewardship like prescribed burns and habitat restoration within them. At the same time, the rule prevents permanent development that fragments forests, increases erosion and wildfire risk and degrades water quality.

Resources, maps and information about the roadless rule can be found at roadless.org. Those who can’t make the April 30 event may submit comments at roadless.org/contact-representatives.