Resource Management
The Tongass is a healthy, abundant place—and it is the responsibility of land managers to keep it that way into the future. Maintaining this wealth while providing opportunities for people to enjoy, subsist, and work is key to the work we do on the Tongass.
Fisheries and Watershed ManagementWild Alaska salmon are enjoyed worldwide as a premier fish—and much of that salmon comes from streams and lakes on the Tongass. The ecological health of the forest is tied to the productivity of salmon populations in southeast Alaska, and responsible stewardship of fish and habitat resources by the Forest Service is a top priority. The Tongass fisheries and watershed program works to ensure that wild salmon continue to return to abundant, high-quality habitat. Working in partnership with other agencies and stakeholders, the Tongass also boasts a world-class habitat restoration and enhancement program. |
FRESH-DEER ModelThis model, called Forage Resource Evaluation System for Habitat (FRESH-Deer) evaluates forage conditions to characterize habitat capability and can evaluate habitat at the scale of individual stands or broad landscapes. This is a system for evaluating habitat quality for Sitka black-tailed deer on the basis of available food, its nutritional quality, and the nutritional requirements of the adult female segment of the population. We focus on food because it clearly sets the potential upper limit on the number of animals a habitat can support. |
HeritageThe cultures of Southeast Alaska are alive and provide meaningful links to our past. Stewarding and protecting important heritage resources is a critical piece of the work managers do on the Tongass. |
KarstKarst landscapes feature cave systems, sinkholes, and deep pits, due to soluble carbonate bedrock such as limestone. Geologists on the Tongass are researching, monitoring and protecting these unique and critical places across the Forest. |
Land Use Designations (LUD) DescriptionsThe Tongass Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) is subdivided and “zoned” into various land use designations (LUDs), similar to city zoning practices, which is how the Forest Service accommodates multiple uses across one land base to meet social, economic, and ecological needs. |
SubsistenceMany rural Alaskans, both Native and non-native, obtain basic sustenance from the harvest of wildlife and fish resources, and depend on these resources as part of their history, cultural identify, and community life. Tongass subsistence biologists work with the State, other federal agencies, and native and rural communities to protect and sustainably manage these crucial resources. |
Tongass Young Growth InventoryThe Tongass Young Growth Inventory is part of the forest’s young growth transition plan, which is responsive to the 2013 memorandum by the Secretary of Agriculture instructing the Tongass “to speed the transition away from old-growth timber harvesting and towards a forest industry that utilizes second growth – or young growth – forests.” The State of Alaska and the Forest Service entered into a Challenge Cost-share agreement in June 2015, to complete inventory work associated with the young growth transition. Work towards the transition will include collecting, analyzing, and using forest resource information to implement sound sustainable forest management practices across Southeast Alaska, while offering training and developing job opportunities for rural residents in natural resource fields. For more information and to view the story map, click here. A new report based on the past 5 years of YG Inventory work can be found here. This report is the product of the ongoing partnership between the Forest Service, the Alaska Division of Forestry, and others, to implement the recommendations of the Tongass Advisory Committee in pursuit of the young growth transition and shared stewardship of the Tongass National Forest. View the news release here. |
WildernessAlaska is a wild, intact place, and this is one of the things that people value most about it. In recognition of this, and the exceptional resources found here, Congress has designated almost one third of the Tongass (5.7 million acres) to be managed as wilderness. Wilderness managers monitor the 19 wilderness areas on the Tongass to ensure wilderness values are maintained. |
WildlifeAlaska is known for its abundant wildlife—and the Tongass is no exception. Here, Tongass managers ensure that brown and black bears, wolves, eagles, goshawks, shorebirds, marten, and a myriad of other species will make their home here for years to come. The wildlife program implements priority stewardship work to benefit Tongass wildlife including restoring young-growth forests towards old-growth conditions, removing marine debris, installing bear-proof food and garbage containers, outhouse vent covers, and bird-friendly window treatments at recreation facilities, and enhancing habitat for key species. The 2020 wildlife young-growth management strategy that helps prioritize forest restoration for Tongass wildlife can be found here. |