Tongass National Forest

KEY FACTS

Total Acreage: 16.8 million Protection History: Created September 10, 1907, when the Tongass National Forest was created via presidential proclamation by President Theodore Roosevelt. In July 1908, the Tongass was combined with the Alexander Archipelago Forest Reserve (created August 20, 1902). Additional proclamations were made in February 1909 and June 1925, bringing the Tongass to its current size. Most Recent Development: Roadless Rule Exemption Review Process. As of September 2018, the U.S. Forest Service is evaluating a state-specific Roadless Rule as requested by the state of Alaska. Threats: A Roadless Rule rollback and/or exemption for the Tongass could re-start wide scale clearcutting of old-growth logging. Additionally, land transfers to private corporations could fragment the forest even further. Climate Change: When old-growth rainforests like the Tongass are cut down, they release up to two-thirds of their stored carbon to the atmosphere. 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 approximately 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 covered under the Roadless Rule 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, scientists believe that retaining the intact roadless areas of the Tongass is a “key element” in sustaining the region’s extraordinary salmon runs (and its commercial, subsistence and recreational fisheries). Unfortunately, through legislation and regulatory rollbacks, the Alaska delegation and the current administration are attempting to exempt the Tongass from roadless protections.

At the end of the Obama administration, the U.S. Forest Service finalized an amendment to the Tongass Land Management Plan (TLMP) that slowly moves 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 its actions on the Roadless Rule, has been attempting to reverse and weaken protections guaranteed by TLMP through riders in must-pass legislative vehicles and stand-alone legislation. 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 | Research & Reports

Recent Legislative Activity

• H.R. 2491/S. 1311, Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2019
  • 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) with Senator Maria Cantwell's office (D-WA) or Mariel Jorgensen (mailto:mariel.jorgensen@mail.house.gov) with Rep. Gallego's office (D-AZ).

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 the tourism fishing industries in Southeast Alaska, each of which contributes approximately $1 billion dollars to the region’s economy each year.
• 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 priorities to meet the needs of all Southeast Alaskans, not just the timber industry.

Fact Sheets

• TLMP Amendment of 2016
• The Roadless Area Conservation Rule

Congressional Letters

• Letter from House Democrats Opposing Roadless Rule Rollbacks in Alaska, October 2018
• Letter Senate Democrats Opposing Roadless Rule Rollbacks in Alaska, October 2018

Public Letters

• Environmental Community Opposition Letter to USFS on Alaska State Specific Roadless Rule, October 2018
• Letter from Scientists to the USFS Supporting Roadless Rule Protection in the Tongass, September 2018
• 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

Maps

• National Forests of Alaska - USFS
• The Tongass 77 Priority Salmon Watersheds
• Tongass National Forest Roadless Areas

Research & Reports

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