Tom's Turn: Notes from our Senior Editor

Petitions and Politics

July 20, 2006

If I seem obsessed by the Roadless Rule, well, I am. Sorry, but there you have it. It's a fascinating dance that's been going on for years and is likely to continue a while yet.

The big news since last we spoke on the matter was the filing last week of a petition by Arnold Schwarzenegger, to a great deal of fanfare, seeking protection for all 4-plus million acres of roadless areas in the national forests of California.

This is interesting on several fronts.

Arnold is a Republican. California is a plaintiff in a lawsuit that seeks to have the petition process cancelled. The suit was filed by the state's elected attorney general, Bill Lockyer, a Democrat. The other plaintiff states (Oregon, Washington, New Mexico) all have Democratic governors.

The White House, and Mark Rey, the Agriculture Under Secretary in charge of the Forest Service, may have hoped that Arnold would not bother them with a petition or would seek to have at least some acreage opened for roads and logging. In fact, in 2004, when the repeal of the Roadless Rule was announced along with its replacement with the governors' petition process, Arnold indicated that he supported the repeal of the rule and that he would not submit a petition. But Arnold is up for reelection, and evidently his advisors think protecting roadless areas makes political sense. His challenger, Phil Angelides, is touting his own environmental record forcefully.

It is often said that the vast majority of Americans support environmental protection but rarely make voting decisions based on environmental issues. With global warming taking center stage, I have a feeling that phenomenon may be coming to an end. And not a minute too soon.

Tom Turner, Senior Editor
yourturn@earthjustice.org