The Wilderness Society has generated some ink and electrons by responding to a federal judge’s decision that potentially exposes 13.6 million acres of roadless forests in 29 states to exploitation. Most recently, “The Hill”, a highly influential publication in Washington, DC, asked us to write a post on its blog to explain what the ruling means to us and what we think should happen next.

In mid-November, we asked our Wild Alert subscribers to let the Bush Administration know that its last-minute plan to sell off some of our last ancient forests in Oregon to the timber industry is unacceptable.

And the response was overwhelming!

In New Mexico’s Santa Fe National Forest you’ll find one of the most heavily roaded forests in the southwest. More than 4,470 miles of road braid across its landscape—enough to take you from Santa Fe to Reykjavik, Iceland.

If loads of roads weren’t what you were expecting to find in a national forest, you’ll be happy to know that the forest may soon see a return of roadless areas.

Recently, the forest released an initial plan to close many miles of unnecessary, environmentally damaging roads across the forest.