Court says no to reconsidering Roadless Rule

A federal appeals court has rejected Wyoming's request for it to reconsider a decision upholding the Roadless Rule. The 2001 rule bars development on millions of acres of roadless areas in national forests.

Last year, a three-judge panel of the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the 2001 rule passed under former President Bill Clinton. On Thursday, the court denied Wyoming's request for a rehearing. The Colorado Mining Association, which is part of the lawsuit, says they're considering taking the matter to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit has also upheld the 2001 rule.

Wyoming had argued that the definition of roadless lands is synonymous with wilderness lands, and that the 1964 Wilderness Act states that only Congress can designate wilderness lands.