The Scientific Societies Panel, composed of a group of renowned national scientists by the request of Congress, recommended that roadless areas 1,000 acres or greater be protected from logging and road building. Protection of this type ensures that the ecological strong holds for fish and wildlife habitat, and water quality will be protected. A 1996 study by Forest Service scientists, Swanson and Loomis, shows that the largest growth in recreation over the next 50 years will be in wildlife viewing and backpacking in backcountry areas. The study found that the demand for primitive recreation will outstrip the supply by the year 2000 in Oregon and Washington. A poll, commissioned by the Forest Water Alliance, found that almost 3 of every 4 voters in the Pacific Northwest wanted to see more federal land designated as wilderness.
Elk depend on the forest for cover, especially in winter.
Bull trout are a prime indicator of the health of forest ecosystems. They depend on very clean, cold water, which is maintained by intact forests and unroaded landscapes. Research has found that bull trout and other temperature sensitive fish species can tolerate pulses of sediment that are caused from wildfire, but not from continual bleeding of sediment from road construction and logged hillsides. There are roughly 85 million acres of unprotected roadless public wildland in the contiguous 48 states. In the National Forests alone, there are 380,000 miles of constructed roads.