Tongass National Forest

KEY FACTS

Total Acreage – 16.8 million Original Protection – September 10, 1907 under Republican Theodore Roosevelt Expanded Protection – July 1, 1908 when combined with the Alexander Archipelago Most Recent Action – September, 2018 when USDA-FS field a Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for a state-specific Roadless Rule Logging Threats - Roadless Rule rollback and/or exemption for the Tongass; land transfers to private corporations; continued clear-cut old-growth logging Climate Change Impacts - Rising temperatures and melting glaciers disrupting salmon runs and other critical habitat Wilderness – There are 19 designated wilderness areas within the Tongass, more than in any other national forest Wildlife – Five species of Pacific Salmon, humpback and orca whales, otters, beavers, wolves, deer, plus some of the largest concentrations of brown bears and bald eagles in America

At 17 million acres, the Tongass National Forest is America’s largest national forest, encompassing the majority of the southeast Alaska panhandle. Each year more than 1 million people come to experience glaciers flowing from the mountains into the sea and iconic wildlife that thrives in one of the largest remaining temperate rainforests in the world.

Alaska’s national forests were included in the Roadless Rule—with overwhelming support from commenters—expressly because forest wildlands persist in Alaska on a scale unknown elsewhere in the country. In addition to harboring great natural beauty and iconic wildlife, federal scientists found that retaining the intact roadless areas of the Tongass is a “key element” in sustaining the region’s extraordinary salmon runs (and their commercial, subsistence, and recreational fisheries). Unfortunately, through legislation and regulatory rollbacks, the Alaska delegation and the current administration are attempting to remove, modify, and/or exempt roadless protections for the Tongass National Forest.

At the end of the Obama administration, the USFS approved the Tongass Land Management Plan (TLMP) for slowly moving the Tongass away from taxpayer-subsidized, industrial-scale old-growth logging, long since abandoned elsewhere in the national forest system. Despite strong public support and scientific backing, the Alaska delegation, similar to the Roadless Rule, has been attempting to reverse and weaken protections guaranteed by the TLMP through riders in must-pass legislative vehicles and stand-alone legislation.

The only legislation that should be pursued to truly protect the Tongass are those that would codify the Roadless Rule and sustain the TLMP parameters as established in 2016, not weaken or reverse them. Please see below for relevant legislation, talking points, fact sheets, and more on what we're doing to defend the Tongass National Forest.

Fact Sheets | Congressional Letters | Public Letters | Maps | Reports

Recent Legislative Activity

• S. 3333, Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2018
  • This bill would provide lasting protection for inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System.
  • To cosponsor: email Bryan Petit (mailto:Bryan_Petit@energy.senate.gov) on Sen. Cantwell's Energy and Natural Resources Committee staff.

• H.R. 2, 2018 Farm Bill
  • H.Amdt598 from Rep. Young would exempt all National Forests in Alaska from the Roadless Rule.

• S. 1481, Alaska Native Claims Settlement Improvement Act
  • From Senator Murkowski, this bill contains numerous provisions that would circumvent the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) by removing important checks and balances, especially with regard to some of Alaska’s most high quality public lands within the Tongass National Forest and the National Wildlife Refuge System.

• H.R. 1867/S. 785, Native Veterans Land Allotment Equity Act
  • From Rep. Young / Sen. Sullivan, this bill would allow the transfer of nearly half a million acres of public land into private ownership, carving up Alaska’s most valuable public lands and creating thousands of inholdings in national wildlife refuges, wilderness areas and national forests.

Talking Points

• Opening up the Tongass National Forest roadless areas to road building and logging would threaten the abundant wildlife and beautiful scenery essential to tourism in Southeast Alaska, an industry that contributes more than $1 billion dollars to the region each year and accounts for 15 percent of the region’s employment.
• The Roadless Rule is the result of one of the most extensive public processes in U.S. history – more than 1.6 million people submitted comments on the rule, and 95% of those commented favorably on roadless protections.
• Southeast Alaska can move forward with the TLMP Amendment. Built on the consensus of Alaskans, the amendment supports prioritizing premiere salmon watersheds and other essential conservation lands, and shifting our priorities to meet the needs of all southeast Alaskans, not just the timber industry.

Fact Sheets

• TLMP Amendment of 2016
• Millions of Acres at Risk in the Tongass

Public Letters

• Environmental Community Opposition Letter to Alaska Native Claims Settlement Improvement Act (S. 1481) January 2018
• Letter from Business Owners, Guides, Outfitters, Hunters and Anglers Supporting Tongass 77
• Environmental Community Opposition Letter to Alaska Native Veterans Land Allotment Equity Act (S. 785), July 2017

Maps

• The Tongass 77 Priority Salmon Watersheds

Reports

• The Tongass Transition Framework: A New Path Forward? - Headwaters Economics December, 2014