Trump wants to open nearly all national forest trails to dirt bikes and ATVs

This is public lands news rather than a home energy story, but here's what's happening. The U.S. Forest Service currently keeps national forest trails closed to off-highway vehicles like ATVs, dirt bikes, and snowmobiles unless a trail is specifically marked open. The Trump administration wants to flip that rule so trails are open to motorized use unless specifically marked closed. Supporters say this expands recreation access, including for people with disabilities or older visitors who rely on vehicles to get into the backcountry. Opponents, including conservation groups and some anglers, warn it could let motorized traffic spread onto trails never built for it, damaging streams, wildlife habitat, and past restoration work.

One example cited involves a Montana river where uncontrolled vehicle crossings once wiped out most of the local fish population before a targeted restoration project, guided by the existing rule, brought it back. Critics worry that without clear designations, similar damage could happen elsewhere.

The Forest Service is taking public comments on this proposed change through September 23. It's one of several public-lands policy shifts moving forward at the same time, including a separate push to roll back the "Roadless Rule," which currently limits road-building and logging on 45 million acres of forest land; that comment period runs through October 6.

For homeowners, this doesn't affect energy upgrades or rebates. It matters mainly if you use national forests for hiking, fishing, or riding, or if you're weighing in through the public comment process before the deadlines close.