60,000 MILES OF "GHOST ROADS" - POOR ROAD CLOSURES
THREATEN FOREST ECOSYSTEMS

     Updated inventories by the Forest Service have revealed an
additional 60,000 miles of "ghost roads" that are not officially included
in the National Forest road system.  These uninventoried "ghost roads"
are primarily temporary roads from old timber sales that should have
been removed by the contractor and roads created by off-road vehicles. 
These unplanned and often unconstructed roads add to the already
significant ecological impact of the 373,000 miles of known roads. 
Predator Project's Roads Scholar Project has been conducting on-the-
ground inventories in the northern Rockies since 1994 and confirms the
existence and the serious threat posed by these roads.  

     This brings the total road mileage in the National Forests to at
least 440,000 miles, and the final inventories for each forest being
completed as part of the long term roads process are expected to reveal
tens of thousands more miles.  In addition, there are 29,500 miles of
paved roads and highways controlled and maintained by counties, states
and the interstate highway system across the National Forests that are
not included in agency inventories or road density calculations.  

     The Roads Scholar Project also revealed that many Forest
Service road closures were ineffective at keeping motorized vehicles
out.  And despite effective closures on many roads, fully one-third of
those surveyed (123 of 343 effective road closures) showed signs of
motorized use beyond the otherwise effective closure, suggesting that
the agency was still using them.  For more information about the Roads
Scholar Project, please contact Dave Havlick at 406/543-8424 or
havlick@wildrockies.org