Preserve Our Forests

16,000 Environment America supporters speak up to save the Tongass

For centuries, the trees of the Tongass have stood firmly rooted in their forest home. But as threats of logging and development encroached, nearly 16,000 supporters stood to save the forest. 

Forests

For centuries, the trees of the Tongass have stood firmly rooted in their forest home. But as threats of logging and development encroached, nearly 16,000 supporters stood to save the forest. 

On Jan. 24, Environment America delivered 15,941 petition signatures to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) during a public comment period on restoring the Roadless Area Conservation Rule for the Tongass. In the 1990s, Environment America’s network helped win initial Roadless Rule protections for the forest. Now, restoring the rule after a 2020 rollback would protect the Tongass — the largest national forest in the United States, a haven for wildlife and a carbon sink — from logging and development. 

“Restoring the Roadless Rule will ensure that the Sitka spruces stand tall for centuries to come,” said Environment America Public Lands Director Ellen Montgomery. “In a world where we lose so much nature every minute, we must protect the most important places we have left like the Tongass.” 

Read more about the comment period.

Learn more about our Conservation campaign. 

Photo: The Tongass provides integral habitats for species such as brown bears, bald eagles and all five species of pacific salmon. Credit: Ian via Flickr, CC BY NC 2.0

Mary Katherine Moore
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