Tongas

David Sparks Ph.D.

At 17 million acres, the Tongass National Forest is one of the largest temperate rainforests in the world. It’s also a hunting and fishing paradise, and its tourism and seafood economies support 25 percent of jobs in the region. But the U.S. Forest Service announced plans to exempt the Tongass from the Clinton-era Roadless Rule to allow more old-growth logging and development on 9.2 million acres that are currently protected. Editor-in-Chief Alex Robinson put boots on the ground in Alaska to hunt and fish with locals, unpack the debate, and report on the ways this rollback will impact the local environment and economy.