Maintaining the natural state of roadless national forests in Utah, as in the rest of the country, properly is the responsibility of the federal government. This rule change would abrogate that obligation and open the door to commercial logging wide enough for the timber industry to drive its trucks through.

Local Forest Service spokeswoman Erin O'Connor says, rightly enough, that some roads are necessary for firefighting, to maintain water lines and to remove dangerous underbrush that can be fuel for wildfires. Don Peay, founder of Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, says wildlife and fish habitat can be harmed by invasive non-native plants and overgrowth of native trees. Clearly, the Forest Service should be able to deal with those problems.

But the Bush plan goes far beyond giving access to manage the forests. Unless the governor goes through a complicated process to make a case for federal protection, the roadless areas that have been off-limits to development would be up for grabs. There would be enormous pressure on governors to accommodate drilling equipment and logging crews.

Can governors withstand that kind of pressure, backed up with substantial political-campaign dollars? It seems unlikely.

The "roadless rule" was adopted in the last days of the Clinton administration to prevent development in a quarter of the nation's forests. It has been struck down twice in federal court. The second decision, which put the roadless rule on hold, is being appealed by environmentalists in one of several pending court cases regarding the rule change. Utah was among the litigants against the roadless rule in 2001.

Unless successfully challenged in court, the Bush plan will go into effect in 18 months.

Proponents say this rule would promote a "partnership" between the federal and state governments. But it is more likely to become a collaboration between politicians and those who stand to gain financially from commercial logging and drilling, to the detriment of the nation's forests.

Timber companies already enjoy access to more than half of the National Forest lands. In Utah, only 10 percent of those lands has been designated as wilderness; 49 percent is designated roadless, but road work is allowed on 44 percent of the roadless area.

The national forests belong to all Americans. Their beauty, their value as watershed and their potential for recreation and solitude should be protected for all of us to enjoy.