National forests worth a lot of green

America’s national forests, in addition to being a welcome respite from the city and a popular vacation destination, provide a lot of valuable revenue.

Our September report, “Worth More Wild: The Value of Roadless National Forests,” catalogues the many ways that roadless areas are worth more than the logs they could become. The report makes the case for protecting roadless areas—not only for their natural beauty and intangible benefits, but for the actual dollar value these places represent. Lodging and rentals, drinking water, and wildlife watching are among the many revenue-generating activities that annually bring billions of dollars in revenue to states with roadless areas.

Across the country, we’re pushing  congressional delegations to support a law in Congress that would permanently protect roadless areas set aside by the Roadless Rule of 2001.

Congress to take up mountaintop removal

In August, the Bush administration made it easier for the coal industry to engage in an outrageous, outdated practice known as “mountaintop removal.”

In West Virginia, Virginia, Ohio and other states, coal companies literally blast the tops off of mountains in order to get at seams of coal, dumping the debris into nearby lakes and streams. The administration’s rule change would make it far more difficult to challenge mountaintop removal in court under the Clean Water Act.

Along with Environment America, our federation of state environmental groups, we objected to the plans. We’re lobbying members of Congress to overturn the rule change. Reps. Patrick Kennedy and James R. Langevin have joined 105 other members of Congress in agreeing to co-sponsor the measure.

The effects of mountaintop removal mining near Whitesville, W. Va.