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If the Roadless Rule is revoked: what would come next?

11/4/2019

 
Bad news if you care about fish, wildlife and wild places: the president, governor and our members of Congress in Alaska support opening up 9 million acres of the Tongass National Forest to old-growth logging and road building by removing the Tongass from the Roadless Rule.

The situation gets even worse when one considers that if that exemption goes through and the Tongass no longer benefits from the conservation measure of the Roadless Rule, a new Tongass Land Management Plan would likely have to be created and the fish-and-wildlife-friendly “Tongass Transition” will be scrapped.

Let us back up to explain fully what this means for our fish and wildlife.

Thanks to thousands of comments from Southeast Alaskans and others who care about the forest, the Forest Service updated the Tongass Land Management Plan (TLMP) in 2016. The process was lengthy, expensive and sometimes contentious but the end-result was a Forest Plan that protected high value fish and wildlife habitat that accommodated logging and had widespread public support. This is where the aforementioned “transition” comes into play.

In 2010, the Forest Service announced it would reduce old growth timber harvest on the Tongass while increasing the harvest of second or young growth timber. This shift was coined the “Tongass Transition” and like the 2016 Forest Plan, it was the product of a great deal of public input and was broadly supported by folks in Southeast Alaska.

Essentially, the 2016 Forest Plan provided the terms for which the Transition would be implemented.  So, for what was perhaps the very first time ever on the Tongass, we had commonly held goal (prioritizing fish and wildlife and the growth of their associated industries!) with a framework established for how to achieve it.  Although no one flew a “Mission Accomplished” banner across the stern of an aircraft carrier, there was a general sense the infamous Tongass Timber Wars had finally come to an end.

Skip ahead 2 years. The Trump Administration accepted the State of Alaska’s petition to review the Roadless Rule in Alaska. Skip another year ahead where we’re now facing a potential full exemption from the Roadless Rule. More specifically, the administration has directed the Forest Service to list the complete removal of the Roadless Rule as the “preferred alternative” in the Draft environmental impact statement (EIS). If this moves ahead and the Roadless Rule is un-done on the Tongass, all the public process, consensus and tax-payer provided planning dollars would be flushed down the drain. 

A full exemption from the Roadless Rule will require a new TLMP. All that time, energy and money that went into the 2016 Plan (including many of your comments) will have to expended yet again, just three short years later. 

If the Transition to a sustainable young growth harvest regime isn’t scrapped altogether it will most certainly be extended to the point it will become meaningless—as long as politicians continue to clear the way for more old-growth harvest, Tongass timber operators will get in line for it. They have no motivation to change, adapt or innovate when they continue to get government hand-outs. 

Governor Dunleavey began his time in Alaska as logger on the Tongass back in the 80’s, Senator Murkowski grew up in the region during heyday of clear-cutting old growth trees and mashing them into pulp.
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However, the reality is, an exemption from the Roadless Rule will not create another single logging job on the Tongass. In fact, according to a cost-benefit analysis performed by the Congressional Budget Office, an exemption will only serve to reduce the amount of money outfitters and guides and tourism businesses stand to make each season.

All these political attempts to turn back the clock makes me nostalgic for 2016. The only way we get back to that is to defeat the proposed exemption to the Roadless Rule! Anyone can comment using our online form here. We encourage you to take a moment to customize your comment and explain why Roadless Areas on the Tongass (or Chugach) National Forest is important to you.

Comment Today
Nov. 4-14: check out the list of communities where the Forest Service will be holding meetings on the Roadless Rule. We encourage you to attend and ask questions. 

Conserving Wild Places on the Tongass is Up to Us!

10/16/2019

 
The U.S. Forest Service has just announced their plan to exempt the Tongass National Forest from the national Roadless Rule.
The Roadless Rule has conserved key areas of the Tongass from industrial old-growth logging and supported habitat for salmon, trout and steelhead, provided recreational access for anglers, and advanced southeast Alaska’s  $2 billion fishing and tourism industries. The proposed repeal of the Roadless Rule on the Tongass is a direct result of political and special interest decision-making aimed at reviving an outdated clear-cut logging industry that threatens key fish and wildlife resources in southeast Alaska. For a full refresher on the Roadless Rule and why it’s important to Southeast, click here.
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Add your voice today: 
​Tell the U.S. Forest Service that you want to see conservation measures remain
 in place for key-fish producing areas of the Tongass.  
The Forest Service is asking the public to weigh in on its proposal to eliminate protections for roadless areas. This is your opportunity to tell the Forest Service that you value keeping our wildlife areas, wild salmon watersheds, and our fishing and tourism economies strong. Your input matters if you live in southeast Alaska, if you visit the Tongass, or even if you merely hope to visit someday!

While we have a simple, pre-written comment available for you online, personalized comments can be more effective.
Please take a few minutes to customize your comment at this link. 
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Below is an outline and key points for creating your own comment.
  • “Hello, my name is ___________ and I live in ____________.” 
  • “I support keeping the Roadless Rule on the Tongass.” 
  • Describe where you use the Tongass and why those places are so special. 
  • Explain how you use the Tongass, such as for recreational fishing, commercial use, subsistence, hunting, camping, hiking, boating, primitive recreation, semi-primitive recreation, etc. 
  • Please specifically mention the need to conserve key fish-producing areas of the forest, such as the Tongass 77. For example: “Protecting key wildlife areas and salmon watersheds such as the Tongass 77 is important for our economy and way of life in Southeast Alaska.” 
  • Optional: add additional specific information regarding the importance of intact fish and wildlife habitat, the impacts of logging or roads, or the importance of the Roadless Rule to show why you support protecting roadless areas on the Tongass. 

Some additional detail that may be helpful: 

The Existing Roadless Rule 
  • The Roadless Rule is working. It now conserves 58 million acres of fish and wildlife habitat, recreation areas, drinking- water resources and other lakes, rivers and streams across the National Forest system, which in turn protects our salmon and our tourism and recreation economy. The Rule protects more than 9 million acres on the Tongass, preventing the expansion of clear-cut logging of old-growth timber. 
  • The Roadless Rule has already been through the public process. More than 1.6 million people commented during the rulemaking process in 2001, and 95% of them supported strong protections for roadless areas. Public comments in 2018 and 2019 have also overwhelmingly supported retaining the rule in Alaska.
  • The Roadless Rule struck the right balance by allowing energy, infrastructure and other development activities. All 58 applications for development activities in Tongass Roadless Areas, mainly associated with mineral exploration and hydropower development, have been granted. Approval generally takes just 1-3 weeks. 
The Tongass 
  • The Tongass is a national treasure. As our largest national forest and part of the largest remaining  intact temperate rainforest in the world, the Tongass has a unique assemblage of plants, animals and fish found in vast and sustainable numbers.  It is a place like no other. 
  • The Tongass produces 80% of the salmon harvested on the National Forest system (about 50 million annually). 
  • The Tongass hosts the highest density of nesting bald eagles and brown bear in the world. 
  • More than 50 animal species feed on Tongass salmon when they return to spawn.  
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  • Tongass is a globally important carbon sink.  The Tongass stores 8% of all the carbon stored in America’s forests and, in doing so, helps reduce the impacts of climate change.  
  • The Roadless Rule protects fish and wildlife. The Tongass produces more salmon than all other National Forests, combined.  Roadless areas and places like the Tongass 77 contain highly-productive fish habitat that is critical to local fishing and tourism industries, which combine to contribute more than $2 billion in economic activity and roughly 26% of jobs in the region, annually. 

Roads 
  • We don’t need more roads.  The Tongass National Forest already has more than 5,000 miles of permanent logging roads transecting its landscape to access timber. 
  • Road construction on the Tongass is expensive.  American taxpayers have spent more than $600 million building logging roads on the Tongass over the past 20 years. According to the Taxpayers for Common Sense, USFS could end up losing more than $180 million in the Tongass over the next four years.
  • We can’t take care of the existing Tongass roads. Congressional sources pin the Tongass road maintenance backlog at roughly $68 million. The Forest Service estimates it has a backlog of more than $100 million in watershed restoration needs.
  • Roads are bad for fish. The Forest Service has surveyed 3,687 places where roads cross fish streams on the Tongass (culverts and bridges) and found 33% of them fail to meet standards to allow fish migration. That means there are more than 1,200 places on the Tongass where roads don’t allow fish to migrate past at all life stages! We applaud the Forest Service’s on-going efforts to fix these problems, but we never should have gotten here in the first place and we question the logic behind adding to the problem. 
Customize Your Comment Today!

Proposed repeal of Roadless Rule on Tongass National Forest harmful to salmon, wildlife

10/15/2019

 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Austin Williams, Trout Unlimited, (907) 227-1590

Proposed repeal of Roadless Rule on Tongass National Forest harmful to salmon, wildlife
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Sportsmen react to roadless management proposal for Southeast Alaska’s Tongass National Forest released today by U.S. Forest Service

JUNEAU, AK - Today, the U.S. Forest Service announced it will release its draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for the Alaska Roadless Rule this week, with a preferred alternative to repeal long-standing protections for more than 9 million acres of Southeast Alaska’s Tongass National Forest. The DEIS release will trigger a 60-day comment period where the public can weigh in on the agency’s proposal. Repealing the rule would make currently-protected lands available for expanded clear-cut logging of old-growth forest and construction of logging roads.

In response to the preferred alternative, Austin Williams, Trout Unlimited’s Alaska Legal and Policy Director, issued the following statement:

“The proposed repeal of the Roadless Rule caters to the outdated old-growth, clear-cut logging industry and shows blatant disregard for everyday Alaskans who rely on and enjoy salmon, wildlife, clean water, abundant subsistence resources, and beautiful natural scenery.

The Tongass is all of ours. Repealing the Roadless Rule would cast aside years of collaboration and thriving businesses that depend on healthy forests, and usher in a new era of reckless old-growth clear-cut logging that pollutes our streams, hurts our salmon and deer populations, and spoils the forest and scenery. This proposed rule is a complete about-face from the direction we should be headed and reflects the fact that special interests and not common sense are guiding this decision.

People throughout Alaska and the rest of the country depend on the productive rivers and wild fish of the Tongass for food, jobs, and recreation. We urge anyone who shares these values to comment to the Forest Service and urge them to uphold the Roadless Rule and conserve key areas of the Tongass, including the highest quality salmon-producing watersheds within the Tongass 77.”
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The Tongass produces more salmon than all other national forests combined, and the fishing and tourism industry supported by the intact forest account for more than 25 percent of local jobs in the region. A statewide 2019 poll commissioned by Trout Unlimited found a majority of likely voters in Alaska opposed efforts to repeal the Roadless Rule and strongly supported efforts to protect salmon, the salmon industry, and high-value salmon streams in the Tongass such as those included in the Tongass 77.

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Trout Unlimited is the nation’s oldest and largest coldwater fisheries conservation organization. In Alaska, we work with sportsmen and women to ensure the state’s trout and salmon resources remain healthy far into the future through our local chapters and offices in Anchorage and Juneau. Follow TU’s Tongass efforts on Facebook and visit us online at tu.org. Learn more about our work to conserve key areas of the Tongass National Forest at americansalmonforest.org.
Comment to Preserve the Roadless Rule here

Things You Can / Cannot do in Roadless Areas

9/30/2019

0 Comments

 
There has been a popular topic in the news lately; the Roadless Rule. So, let’s run through some facts: 

The Roadless Rule provides important protections to about 58 million acres of back country public land area throughout the United States that is managed by the United States Forest Service. These roadless areas cover 9.4 million acres of land throughout the Tongass National Forest. The Roadless Rule prohibits new road construction and commercial logging on these forested areas. Current congressionally designated lands protect only about a third of documented fish habitat, which makes Roadless Rule protections critical to our fish and wildlife habitat.  

The Roadless Rule has been in place on the Tongass for nearly 20 years! During that time, Southeast Alaskans have been able to enjoy public lands, our economy has grown to be based upon our resources (fishing, tourism), not at their expense (clear-cut logging). There are many misconceptions about this, but we want to set the record straight.  

The Roadless Rule is intended to keep public lands, salmon and trout habitat, and strong economies as they are today for future generations to enjoy and prosper from.  
Take Action
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Take Action
The state of Alaska has petitioned the Forest Service to undo the Roadless Rule in the Tongass. This would lead to increased road-building and industrial clear-cut, old-growth logging that harms salmon. On behalf of the fish, outdoor recreation economy and clean water that defines this region, we are calling on anglers across the country to submit comments to the Forest Service opposing these changes.  

The Roadless Rule is working. It does its job in supporting community growth while sustainably maintaining resources that serve Alaskans in multiple ways. We hope you’ll join us as we stand up for common-sense policies that safeguard the trees, fish and wildlife resources that continue to provide for Americans.

For more information on the Roadless Rule, check out the Roadless 101 Blog. 
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Public Lands Seige

8/30/2019

 
​While we would much prefer to be working on stream restoration projects, supporting sound fish management practices, and highlighting Alaska’s great fish resources, unfortunately, we’re seeing several attacks to Public Lands in the Tongass that need our attention. With the development agenda of our Governor, President, and U.S. Senators in play, that kind of work will have to take a backseat to speaking up to uphold past conservation gains and minimize future losses of fish and wildlife habitat and public lands access on the Tongass. 
PictureAlan Corbett

​“Logging, as currently practiced and planned in southeast Alaska, has the potential to significantly and permanently alter large amounts of wildlife habitat. Wildlife species which are adapted to use existing habitat my decline and associated recreational and subsistence uses may be substantially reduced.”

​- Alaska Department of Fish and Game
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PictureBrandon Hill
Any one of the current issues below would be significant individually, but taken together, you can see there’s no hyperbole behind us saying that public lands on the Tongass are under attack like no other time since the pulp mill days. We need your voice now more than ever to protect our Forest against these threats.  

  • Repeal of the Roadless Rule – This would allow greatly expanded logging and construction of new logging roads on 9.5 million acres of the forest. The proposed rule is likely to come out soon we we’ve started collecting public comments here. To learn more about the Roadless Rule, check out previous blog posts here. 
 
  • Prince of Wales Timber Sale – The Forest Service issued its final decision to authorize 235 million board-feet (mmbf) of old-growth logging and 421 mmbf of young-growth logging over a 15-year period. This is the largest timber sale on the Tongass in decades. Logging activities, which are harmful for fish and wildlife habitat, will occur on Prince of Wales and the surrounding islands.
 
  • Central Tongass Timber Sale – The Forest Service is proposing to authorize 150 mmbf of old-growth logging and 80 mmbf young-growth logging over a 15-year period. Logging would occur in the areas surrounding Wrangell, Kake, and Petersburg. Click here to learn more and comment.
 
  • Karst Amendment – Public comment just closed on a proposal to expand young-growth logging into new areas with sensitive limestone geology, referred to as “moderate-vulnerability karst” areas. If you’ve never heard of Karst, the gist of it is that it produces big trees and productive fish streams. This measure would allow new young-growth logging on more than 1,100 acres on Prince of Wales Island, among other areas on the forest. The Forest Service plans to finalize the amendment this fall.
 
  • South Revillagigedo Timber Sale – Proposes logging 5,500 acres of old-growth forest and 1,000 acres of young-growth forest near Ketchikan. The public comment period will open later this year.
 
  • Legislation to privatize new sections of the Tongass – New legislation is likely to be introduced in U.S. Congress any day that could have huge consequences for public lands in Alaska. Prior versions of the bill would have created 5 new Native corporations and privatized 115,200 acres from the Tongass. Privatizing public lands removes access, conservation measures that protect fish, wildlife and trees, as well as opening the door to development that can negatively impact adjacent public lands.


Here are a few things you can do to help.  We have tried to make them as easy and painless as possible for you:

  1. Comment on the actions above individually using the links provided above.
  2. Write and submit personal comments on the Roadless Rule using the portal. 
  3. Spread the word on any of the issues you think your friends may also be concerned about.
  4. Let us know if you have any questions about these action items, or how you can personally get involved. We are always happy to speak with you.

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AMERICA'S SALMON FOREST 

is a coalition of sport, commercial, and subsistence fishermen, business owners and operators as well as private citizens working together to conserve high-quality salmon and trout spawning and rearing habitat in the Tongass, America's largest national forest

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