Roadless input will be good thing

Gov. Brian Schweitzer is chafing over the Bush administration's approach to managing federal roadless lands, and at first blush, his concerns seem reasonable.

Schweitzer is a Democrat, after all, and he shouldn't be expected to have glowing regards for the Republican president's agenda. In this case, Schweitzer considers the Bush plan to have states petition the Forest Service with recommendations for roadless areas to be an unfunded mandate.

Schweitzer wants the feds to pay for a process of gathering input from Montanans, and he wants the Forest Service to pitch in hundreds of resource specialists to help with the process.

There's nothing wrong with those wants, but they simply may not be necessary. The governor seems to be under the impression that the state of Montana must produce a new inventory of roadless areas backed up by a colossal environmental impact statement evaluating the ups and downs of every acre recommended for roadless designation.

Not so. The Bush administration has given governors an opportunity to gather, in the manner they wish, input from their constituencies regarding roadless areas. The states are not required to provide costly, detailed analysis.

"It's not our intent nor is it specified in our regulations that governors have to do that," said Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey.

Rey also noted that the administration's approach was the direct result of a resolution from the Western Governors Association calling for more state input on the fate of roadless areas.

Even with no federal help at his disposal, Schweitzer does seem resigned to pulling together public input, starting with county commissioners, to be used for a roadless petition to the Forest Service. That's all he needs to do, and he won't be alone in his efforts.

Already, Lincoln County legislators have organized a process that gets under way tonight for soliciting local recommendations on roadless areas. And the process will reportedly involve diverse groups, ranging from loggers to the Yaak Valley Forest Council.

Once the governor launches his information-gathering tour, he will surely be hearing from a good mix of voices. And his administration will have the final say in shaping its recommendations to the Forest Service.

We're hopeful the new roadless policy will reinforce Montana's influence over Washington. That's better than the other way around.