A fall hike through White Pine, a sunset view from Grandeur Peak, or a drive up Millcreek Canyon for an evening picnic all pass through Inventoried Roadless Areas.
In Salt Lake County, these lands cover roughly 30,000 acres, over 35 times the size of New York's Central Park, tucked into mountains most of the county's 1.2 million residents can reach well within an hour.
That scale is easy to overlook. Few counties in the country have this kind of close, everyday access to terrain that still feels remote and is often less than an hour from home.
What the Roadless Rule Actually Does
The Roadless Rule has guided how the U.S. Forest Service manages these lands for about 25 years. At its core, it limits new road construction, since roads are generally considered a first step toward larger development. Without roads, logging infrastructure and industrial buildout become far less feasible. The name reflects that directly.
The federal government is currently considering rescinding the rule. Salt Lake County's Mayor's Office submitted a formal comment opposing that change, citing several areas of concern.
Fire Mitigation Doesn't Require New Roads
One rationale offered for rescinding the rule is that it would support wildfire management. The County's letter raises questions about that reasoning. Fire mitigation work, including cut-and-pile and lop-and-scatter treatments in Millcreek Canyon and the ongoing Big Cottonwood Canyon Watershed Restoration Project, is already occurring inside and adjacent to roadless areas under the rule's existing exceptions.
Available data also complicates the assumption that more roads reduce fire risk. A review of decades of Forest Service wildfire records found that ignition density is lowest in wilderness and roadless areas, and highest within 50 meters of a road.
Roads were associated with roughly four times more fire activity than roadless land. Since human activity accounts for the large majority of unplanned wildfire starts nationwide, increased road access into these areas could introduce more ignition points rather than fewer.
Protecting the Water Supply
The Wasatch Canyons also serve as headwaters for a significant share of the region's drinking water. More than 60 percent of Salt Lake City's municipal water supply originates here, serving an estimated 400,000 residents.
Road construction, along with the associated erosion, runoff, and contamination risk, could place additional strain on a water system many residents depend on every time they turn on a tap.
A Rule Worth Keeping
Rescinding the Roadless Rule would not result in immediate construction. Additional planning steps would still be required first. However, removing this baseline protection introduces long-term uncertainty for these lands and as a consistent framework for protecting water resources and open space.
Shifting that responsibility to individual forest, without that baseline in place, could introduce additional planning requirements and unpredictability for all parties involved, including the County.
Want the Full Story?
This post covers the highlights, but you can find the full letter below.