Lawmakers urge road access in forest to vent methane from mine

Colorado lawmakers on Friday weighed into the Obama administration's deliberations over a proposal submitted by Gov. Bill Ritter for managing national forest roadless areas in the state. A bipartisan group of 15 state legislators asked Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to grant the U.S. Forest Service authority to allow temporary roads in a roadless area in western Colorado for the purpose of venting gas from a coal mine. The lawmakers' letter points out that "the Colorado Roadless Rule Petition (recently submitted to your office) specifically authorized these venting operations" in roadless areas. State lawmakers "request that you immediately re-delegate your authority in this matter to the Forest Service so that consultations with the State of Colorado can be completed as quickly as possible," said the letter circulated and signed Friday morning. At stake is how much recreation, mining, logging and other activities the federal government will allow on 4.2 million roadless acres of Colorado's 14.4 million national forest acres...more