85,000 acres of Tennessee’s national forests open for logging under Trump administration plan

A rollback of protections for rural wooded areas by the Trump administration could open about 85,000 acres of backcountry for logging, mining and road construction. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)

About 85,000 acres of backcountry in Tennessee could be opened for road construction, mining and logging under a Trump administration plan to remove protections from the most remote and untouched portions of U.S. national forests.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins last week announced the plan to rescind the “roadless rule,” which has preserved 59 million acres of public forests and grasslands across the nation since the Clinton administration adopted it in 2001, following decades of advocacy by conservation groups.

Rollins said the move is necessary to allow for wildfire management, create opportunities for the timber industry and reflects President Donald Trump’s mandate to ax “overcomplicated, burdensome barriers that hamper American business and innovation.”

Environmental groups say eliminating the rule puts wildlife, clean water, recreation and old-growth forests “on the chopping block” and clears the way for mining, oil and gas development and timber harvesting.

The announcement “shows this administration is completely out of touch with what Americans value in our public lands,” said Sam Evans, who leads the Southern Environmental Law Center’s National Forests and Parks Program. 

The roadless rule contains specific exceptions for wildfire prevention and suppression, and for removal of non-native species.

“Saying this is about wildfire protection is not even a good fig leaf,” he said.

Of Tennessee’s 698,000 acres of national forested lands, 85,000 have protections under the current roadless rule. 

They include portions of Land Between the Lakes in northern Tennessee and pockets within the Cherokee National Forest that stretches for 660,000 acres across the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Beaver Dam Creek, Slide Hollow, Elk Creek, Bald Mountains, Horse Cove, Sycamore Creek are among the popular backcountry areas currently protected by the roadless rule.

U.S. Department of Agriculture officials did not respond to questions about the proposed rule but noted on its web site that “more information will be released as the rescission process gets underway.”

The process to eliminate a federal rule requires preparation of environmental analyses, compliance with the Endangered Species Act, tribal consultation and coordination with affected states in a public rule-making process, it said.