Statement from Governor Gregoire on Reinstatement of National Forests "Roadless Rule"

For Immediate Release: September 20, 2006

�Today is a great day for Washington; I am very pleased with the decision of the court. Roadless areas contribute to our quality of life and our economy by providing clean water, fish and wildlife habitat along with recreational and business opportunities. During the public comment period for the 2001 Roadless Rule, Washingtonians submitted over 80,000 comments � 96% of which supported complete protection of all roadless areas on national forest lands in the state.

�I am committed to exercising all options to protect the character of our roadless areas. We joined the lawsuit to protect these lands because the federal government should not have rescinded the 2001 rule without following the rulemaking requirements. We have also moved forward with the state-specific petition process and, after reviewing the court�s decision, will carefully consider our next steps.�

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Washingtonians have twice spoken overwhelmingly in favor of complete protection of all roadless areas in the state. In addition to the comments received during the public comment period for the 2001 rule, the public comment period in 2004 again reiterated strong support by Washingtonians for the rule.

In May 2005, the Bush administration repealed the rule and replaced it with one that asks Governors to petition the federal government for roadless area protection. Governor Gregoire is seeking public input before submitting a petition in November.

Comments may be submitted online to Governor Gregoire�s office by filling in the �Washington Roadless Areas Comment Form� at www.governor.wa.gov/roadless.