"Roadless Rule"

The Biden administration’s “America the Beautiful” conservation plan includes a goal of conserving 30% of the nation’s lands and waters by 2030, in part to combat climate change.

In recent years, the assembly has been pretty split over the topic, even voting down multiple resolutions for or against a Tongass exemption. In 2019, assembly members agreed to take no position on roadless.

Analysis by the Woodwell Climate Research Center found that the Tongass National Forest holds 44% of all the carbon stored by the United States’ national forests. 

Other parties defending the exemption include the city of Craig, statewide and Southeast chambers of commerce, electric utilities, shipping companies and resource development advocacy groups.

Despite the expected multimillion-dollar shortfall, officials say the borough won’t burn through all of its savings.

The Trump administration’s Tongass exemption opened up approximately 9.4 million acres of federal forest land to potential road building and other development.

An overwhelming majority on Ketchikan’s City Council wants to defend the Trump administration’s decision to exempt the Tongass National Forest from the Roadless Rule.

The group signed off on a letter to other advisory committees around Alaska urging them to take action on climate change.

Democratic lawmakers in Congress have filed a bill that would reverse the Trump administration’s decision to exempt the nation’s largest national forest from the 2001 rule that restricts road-building and other development.

A coalition including environmental groups, tribes and fishermen filed a lawsuit on Wednesday to restore Roadless Rule protections to 9 million acres of Tongass National Forest.