Forest Service gets message

The U.S. Forest Service has abandoned a controversial proposal to ignore mass e-mails and other mailings from the public commenting on its pending rules and regulations. The plan, part of a proposed rule change by the Bush administration, received widespread criticism from environmentalists and public advocacy groups.

“We saw the error of our ways,” said the U.S. Forest Service’s Jody Sutton. “We want everyone’s comments.” The proposal allowed the Forest Service to consider only “original substantive comments” submitted by citizens.

“The Internet lets people raise their voices,” said Lisa Catapano, director of online advocacy for the Natural Resources Defense Council. “Mass e-mails are a good measurement of how people feel, and they should be listened to.” Catapano estimates her group’s members sent close to 2 million e-mails to the Forest Service in the past year, many of them computer-generated form letters.

-- Charles Duhigg