The Tongass is a national treasure. Created in 1907 by Teddy Roosevelt, the Tongass is America’s largest national forest and the largest intact temperate rainforest in the world. This coastal temperate rainforest—an ecosystem even more rare and threatened than tropical rainforests—boasts towering stands of spruce, hemlock, and cedar. Soaking up more than 100 inches of rain per year, the forests of the Tongass provide critical habitat for healthy populations of grizzly bears, black bears, Sitka black-tailed deer, wolves, and 5 species of wild salmon. Mountain goats roam the steep slopes and rocky mountaintops of the coastal range. Countless streams running through mist-shrouded valleys are the spawning grounds for millions of salmon. Blueberries, huckleberries, delicate ferns, and huge skunk cabbages all grow under the light-filtering forest canopy.

SEACC has protected many Tongass wildlands, but many important places remain at risk.  Roughly half of the big-tree forests that form the biological heart of the Tongass have been logged.  Many of the special places most important to local communities and to salmon and wildlife are still unprotected.  Plans for more timber sales and roads threaten these vital places.  SEACC is working creatively with Southeast Alaska leaders and other forest stakeholders to ensure the health of the Tongass for our communities today and for generations to come.  We have tremendous opportunities, with the efforts of members like you, to protect these incredible big-tree forests. 

Please join SEACC and add your voice to protecting the future of the Tongass.