Last week, ABRA joined representatives of conservation organization from across the nation in Washington, D.C. The trip was sponsored by Earth Justice and Sierra Club. We met with lawmakers to convey our concerns about the potential harms to our national forests in legislation currently under development in Congress.
One topic we covered was the Roadless Area Conservation Act (RACA). RACA would codify into Law the 2001 Roadless Area Protection Rule, which extended certain protections to millions of acres of high-quality forest lands across the U.S. Many of these lands are basically of “wilderness quality” but do not carry all of the restrictions associated with designated wilderness areas. The Roadless Rule is under threat from timber companies, the U.S. Forest Service, several members of Congress and the president, who on Day 1 signed an Executive Order with the intent to strip Roadless Area protections from the Tongass National Forest in SE Alaska. Other states’ Forests are also in the crosshairs. As a Law, not a Rule, RACA would cement existing protections that our forests, and we, have enjoyed for 25 years. This maps show Roadless Areas in Virginia and West Virginia.
During our conversations, we asked Representatives and Senators to sign on as original co-sponsors of the bill, which was reintroduced this afternoon by Senators Cantwell and Gallega, and Representatives Salinas and Ansari. Several days after our group’s meetings with their staff, we learned that Representative Angie Craig and Senator Tina Smith (both from Minnesota) and Senator Peter Welch (Vermont) signed on as original co-sponsors of the legislation.
This proves again that showing up matters! Meeting in person with real people matters! More importantly, YOUR voice matters! Contact your Representatives and Senators to voice your support for RACA. You just might save a wild place right down the road!
Special thanks to Earth Justice and Sierra Club for making the trip possible. Both organization worked hard to ensure our efforts were effective.
If protecting Virginia’s and West Virginia’s wild places matters to you, please support our work.