The wild places of the west are rapidly disappearing due to human encroachment. Humankind has already trashed so much salmon habitat up and down the west coast. Isn't time to think about saving some intact wilderness areas for the future of salmon? If you think so, follow the link...

http://www.tu.org/action-center?vvsrc=%2fcampaigns%2f43495%2frespond

Message sent, thanks!

Lots of living wage jobs provided by the logging that takes place on the Tongass.

Interesting that the linked site actually is calling for USFS to prioritize fish resources/habitat; nothing there about creating Wilderness that I could find in a quick read. The USFS is currently tasked with multi-use management of the National Forests and apparently it is currently updating its management plan for the Tongass.

I actually met with and talked with the new head of the Tongass National Forest when I was in Ketchikan during the end of October at the Alaska Forestry Association convention this year. He's been in 12 different postings, most recently in New Mexico, and plans to retire after working at this post, which he assumes to be 5-7 years.

There are two primary timber harvesters in SE Alaska. SEAlaska, the native corporation, and Viking Lumber.

SEAlaska exports a good portion of their wood to Asia, over 50%, but also send some down to the lower 48 for processing, in addition to some cedar that gets processed in BC. Their logging takes place on native lands.

Viking exports maybe 20-25% of the logs harvested to Asia. The balance of the wood (spruce) is either processed into "cants" that go to Japan and Korea for music wood, is processed into metric dimensional lumber for specialty markets in Asia, or processed into US dimensions to be further processed into finished products in the Grays Harbor area. They do not participate in the stud market. Strictly niche markets for which there are few other sources in the world for the quality of the wood they process.

Loggers and trucking, probably 30-40 jobs, including Columbia Helicopter.
Mill workers, 45-60 in Alaska.
Machinery upkeep, rental, leasing, etc, at least another 30 jobs.
Grays Harbor mills combined, over 250 jobs, for folks who process this wood that comes out of SE Alaska.
Shipping adds another 30-50 jobs.

Having been up there, funded timber sales and flown over these areas, there is no wide spread devastation of the environment. Logging has been done responsibly. The ground recovers quickly with no need for replanting, as nature takes over quickly after an area has been harvested. On every single timber sale of USFS ground stewardship projects are required to be completed that enhance the access of other user groups, including trails and bridges.

This is sustainable logging at its best.

Spot on Andy! The small community by my property enjoys the boost to the economy logging provides. When logging is done responsibly it's not evil. Besides the small communities also benefit from the introduction of the new genetics brought in by the loggers.

Aw, Dogfish has become such a tree hugger! Good to learn of the Tongass turn around. That's a much better story than the 50 year Tongass contract that fed two pulp mills in Ketchikan for decades where the USFS returned $0.10 for every federal dollar spent managing and harvesting timber while degrading watersheds. During that 50 year stint the gov't would have been money ahead to pay the loggers family wage salaries to stay home, leave the trees, and save the federal government millions of dollars.