Spruce boughs hang near a pond in the Tongass National Forest on Monday, Dec. 9, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Spruce boughs hang near a pond in the Tongass National Forest on Monday, Dec. 9, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Opinion: Past logging has disproportionately impacted the most valuable old-growth stands in Southeast Alaska

The Tongass is the only national forest that still clear-cuts old growth.

  • By John Schoen and Matt Kirchhoff
  • Sunday, December 15, 2019 7:00am
  • Opinion

Recent My Turns by Austin Williams and Bert Burkhart have brought attention to a peer-reviewed, scientific paper by Dave Albert and John Schoen (published in Conservation Biology in 2013). That paper documented how logging has disproportionately impacted large tracts of the most productive old-growth forest in Southeast Alaska and the Tongass National Forest. We are writing today to help clarify this issue.

Supporters of the timber industry often point to the relatively small percentage of land area logged to suggest logging has had a minimal impact on the forest. This is confusing because only a third of the Tongass supports productive forest with potential commercial value, and an even smaller fraction of that is economically valuable. The timber industry has always targeted (high-graded) the largest and oldest trees, but those large-tree old-growth stands have always been rare on the Tongass.

Seven decades of high-grading has dramatically depleted and fragmented the Tongass’s largest (4-10 feet in diameter) old-growth trees. It is increasingly rare to find standing trees to rival the size of stumps that are common along the Maybeso Creek, Staney Creek, Harris River, and elsewhere. Even where large trees can still be found on the Tongass (or elsewhere in Southeast), clear-cut logging has often fragmented the landscape and isolated the remaining large trees into smaller, more isolated patches that have diminished value to wildlife.

The study cited here classified forest stands on the Tongass according to their productivity and whether the stand was part of a contiguous tract of productive old-growth forest. The confusion is caused, in part, by the difference between “stand scale” (as in typical USFS timber inventory) versus “landscape scale” (as in how stands are distributed across a landscape of approximately one square mile). It makes a big difference in the highly fragmented forests of Southeast Alaska. The crux of the problem is further fragmentation of the last remaining contiguous old-growth landscapes, particularly within regions of the forest that have already sustained high-levels of timber harvest. Today, many of the contiguous old-growth landscapes are largely confined to roadless areas.

Regionwide, past logging had reduced contiguous old-growth forest between the years 1954 and 2004. The results show that although only 11.9% of the productive old-growth forests have been logged regionwide, large tree stands have been reduced by at least 28.1% and landscapes with the highest volume of contiguous old-growth were reduced by 66.5%. Contiguous high-volume forests on northern Prince of Wales Island were reduced by 93.8%.

Rare, large-tree old-growth stands provide some of the most valuable fish and wildlife habitats on the Tongass. These stands provide critical habitat to all five species of salmon, deer, bear and other species uniquely adapted to this rainforest ecosystem, such as the Alexander Archipelago Wolf, the Queen Charlotte Goshawk, the Prince of Wales Flying Squirrel, the Marbled Murrelet and the Prince of Wale’s Spruce Grouse. The Tongass also stores more carbon than any other national forest, and plays an important role in moderating climate change.

Today, the Tongass is the only national forest that still clear-cuts old growth. Exempting the Tongass from the Roadless Rule and further high-grading of the rarest, most valuable old-growth will result in unsustainable forest management and risk significant impacts to fish and wildlife as well as jeopardize two of Southeast Alaska’s significant economic drivers: fisheries and tourism.


• John Schoen and Matt Kirchhoff are both retired wildlife ecologists living in Anchorage. They both have considerable experience conducting research on the Tongass and collectively have over 70 years of wildlife research and conservation work in Alaska. Columns, My Turns and Letters to the Editor represent the view of the author, not the view of the Juneau Empire.


More in Opinion

Web
Have something to say?

Here’s how to add your voice to the conversation.

President Donald Trump delivers remarks during the National Prayer Breakfast at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Feb. 6, 2025. (Eric Lee/The New York Times)
Opinion: Dismantling the government. And the Bill of Rights

President Donald Trump has asked more than two million federal employees to… Continue reading

The waterfront area for Huna Totem Corp.’s proposed Aak’w Landing. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire file photo)
My Turn: Aak’w Landing offers growth opportunities amidst declines in Juneau

Juneau has two bright possibilities for economic development along the waterfront: the… Continue reading

A preliminary design of Huna Totem’s Aak’w Landing shows an idea for how the project’s Seawalk could connect with the city’s Seawalk at Gold Creek (left). (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: To make Juneau affordable, grow our economy

Based on the deluge of comments on social media, recent proposals by… Continue reading

The White House in Washington, Jan. 28, 2025. A federal judge said on Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, that she intended to temporarily block the Trump administration from imposing a sweeping freeze on trillions of dollars in federal grants and loans, adding to the pushback against an effort by the White House’s Office and Management and Budget. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)
My Turn: A plea for Alaska’s delegation to actively oppose political coup occurring in D.C.

An open letter to Alaska’s Congressional delegation: I am a 40-year resident… Continue reading

Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) questions Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon, during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday morning, Jan. 14, 2025. (Kenny Holston/The New York Times)
Opinion: Sen. Sullivan doesn’t know the meaning of leadership

Last Wednesday, Sen. Dan Sullivan should have been prepared for questions about… Continue reading

Current facilities operated by the private nonprofit Gastineau Human Services Corp., which is seeking to add to its transitional housing in Juneau. (Gastineau Human Services Corp. photo)
Opinion: Housing shouldn’t be a political issue — it’s a human right

Alaska is facing a crisis — one that shouldn’t be up for… Continue reading

(Juneau Empire file photo)
Letter: In the spirit of McKinley, a new name for Juneau

Here is a modest proposal for making Juneau great again. As we… Continue reading

(Juneau Empire file photo)
Letter: Protect the balance of democracy

We are a couple in our 70s with 45-plus years as residents… Continue reading

President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, following his inauguration as the 47th president. Legal experts said the president was testing the boundaries of executive power with aggressive orders designed to stop the country from transitioning to renewable energy. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)
Opinion: Sen. McConnell, not God, made Trump’s retribution presidency possible

I’m not at all impressed by President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed… Continue reading

Juneau Assembly members confer with city administrative leaders during a break in an Assembly meeting Monday, Nov 18, 2024. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: Community affordability takes a back seat to Assembly spending

Less than four months ago, Juneau voters approved a $10 million bond… Continue reading

(Juneau Empire file photo)
Letter: Informing the Public?

The recent Los Angeles area firestorms have created their own media circus… Continue reading