Tribes Fight Trump's Tongass Logging Plan

It's April 3rd. Welcome to Anchorage News Today, powered by AI.

Tribes in Southeast Alaska, like the organized village of Kakae,

are pushing back hard against the Trump administration plan to roll back the two.

Thousand-one, Rolesus Area Conservation Rule.

This rule has protected 58 million acres of national force for over 25 years

by blocking new roads and heavy logging in wild.

Areas.

Now, there are in 44,700,000 acres for cuts,

hitting the Tongas National Forest hardest, the world's biggest,

timber rainforest.

The Tongas isn't just trees.

It's a carbon powerhouse that fights climate change better than anywhere else in the US.

Plus, it's loaded with salmon,

streams and wildlife that feed local communities.

The rule keeps things balanced.

Recreation and subsistence use stay open,

but industrial damage stays out.

Folks are fired up because this hits tribal treaty rights

and federal trust duties right in the gut.

Logging roads would wreck fish habitats, spark more wildfires,

and trash the natural spots that draw tourists worldwide,

hurting rural jobs tied to, clean forests.

Leaders won real tribal input as equals and reviews,

maybe even co-managing Keyzones instead of after the fact nonts.

The rules proven track record supports economies without wrecking the land.

Bottom line.

Keeping the Tongas whole means honoring ancestors

and securing clean air and water for kids, down the line.

And probable voices gotta lead that.

Call.