Mark Warner seeks U.S. protection of wilderness areas in Virginia

[Thom Little]

Gov. Mark R. Warner on Thursday petitioned federal officials to protect more than 380,000 acres of mountain wilderness in Virginia's national forests from development.

Warner asked Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns to issue rules restricting road construction and commercial activity in the wild areas of the George Washington and Jefferson national forests.

The petition asked Johanns to restore in Virginia a 2001 regulation that prohibited development of wilderness areas nationwide except to protect public health and safety. The Bush administration repealed the regulation in May and implemented a process requiring individual states to petition for the amount of protection desired.

Warner's petition, the first filed in the nation, was lauded by the Southern Environmental Law Center and The Wilderness Society.

"The firm stand that Gov. Warner has taken today to defend these last, unprotected wild areas on Virginia's national forests sets a clear standard for all governors," David Carr, public land director for the law center, said in a statement.


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