Tongass Odyssey

Tongass Odyssey
Author: John Schoen
Publisher: University of Alaska Press
Total Pages: 357
Release: 2020-09-01
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 1602234264

Tongass Odyssey is a biologist’s memoir of personal experiences over the past four decades studying brown bears, deer, and mountain goats and advocating for conservation of Alaska’s Tongass National Forest. The largest national forest in the nation, the Tongass encompasses the most significant expanse of intact old-growth temperate rainforest remaining on Earth. Tongass Odyssey is a cautionary tale of the harm that can result when science is eclipsed by politics that are focused on short-term economic gain. Yet even as those problems put the Tongass at risk, the forest also represents a unique opportunity for conserving large, intact landscapes with all their ecological parts, including wild salmon, bears, wolves, eagles, and other wildlife. Combining elements of personal memoir, field journal, natural history, conservation essay, and philosophical reflection, Tongass Odyssey tells an engaging story about an enchanting place.

Southeast Alaska Forests

Southeast Alaska Forests
Author: Sally J. Campbell
Publisher:
Total Pages: 28
Release: 2004
Genre: Forest surveys
ISBN:

This publication presents highlights of a recent southeast Alaska inventory and analysis conducted by the Pacific Northwest Research Station Forest Inventory and Analysis Program (USDA Forest Service). Southeast Alaska has about 22.9 million acres, of which two-thirds are vegetated. Almost 11 million acres are forest land and about 4 million acres have nonforest vegetation (herbs and shrubs). Species diversity is greatest in western hemlockAlaska cedar closed-canopy forests, in mixed-conifer open and woodland forests, and in open tall alder-willow shrub type. Of the forest land, 4.1 million acres are classified as timberland (unreserved productive forest land). About 4.4 million acres of forest land are reserved from harvest; the majority of this reserved land (85 percent) is on the Tongass National Forest (USDA Forest Service). The volume of timber on timberland was estimated at 21,040 million cubic feet; the majority of volume88 percentis on the Tongass National Forest. Seventy-four percent of timberland acres and 84 percent of the growing-stock volume is in sawtimber stands older than 150 years, with western hemlock or western hemlockSitka spruce mix predominating. Most timberland in southeast Alaska is of relatively low productivity, producing less than 85 cubic feet per acre per year. For most timberland acres, average annual growth exceeds average annual mortality and harvest.

Tongass

Tongass
Author: Kathie Durbin
Publisher:
Total Pages: 356
Release: 2005
Genre: History
ISBN:

Set in Alaska's coastal rain forest, Tongass is a dramatic story of greed, courage, bare-knuckles politics, and the fate of a remote, beautiful land.

In Search of the Canary Tree

In Search of the Canary Tree
Author: Lauren E. Oakes
Publisher: Basic Books
Total Pages: 302
Release: 2018-11-27
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1541617428

The award-winning and surprisingly hopeful story of one woman's search for resiliency in a warming world Several years ago, ecologist Lauren E. Oakes set out from California for Alaska's old-growth forests to hunt for a dying tree: the yellow-cedar. With climate change as the culprit, the death of this species meant loss for many Alaskans. Oakes and her research team wanted to chronicle how plants and people could cope with their rapidly changing world. Amidst the standing dead, she discovered the resiliency of forgotten forests, flourishing again in the wake of destruction, and a diverse community of people who persevered to create new relationships with the emerging environment. Eloquent, insightful, and deeply heartening, In Search of the Canary Tree is a case for hope in a warming world.

The Forest Ecosystem of Southeast Alaska

The Forest Ecosystem of Southeast Alaska
Author: A. S. Harris
Publisher:
Total Pages: 120
Release: 1974
Genre: Forest ecology
ISBN:

Large-scale use of the timber resource of southeast Alaska began in 1953 after long efforts to establish a timber industry. Development and present status of the industry and present management of the timber resource are summarized, stressing the biological basis for timber management activities in southeast Alaska today. Ecological and silvicultural considerations related to timber harvest, reforestation, and stand development are discussed. Published and unpublished information are brought together. Current management practices are discussed as a basis for a better understanding of how this information can be helpful in managing the timber resource and to point out where research is needed.

The Forest Ecosystem of Southeast Alaska

The Forest Ecosystem of Southeast Alaska
Author: John S. Hard
Publisher:
Total Pages: 40
Release: 1974
Genre: Forest ecology
ISBN:

Southeast Alaska's remaining virgin forests have few insect pests. The black-headed budworm and the hemlock sawfly, both western hemlock defoliators, are the most important species. They kill some trees, kill tops in others, and cause growth loss, but stands survive their attacks. Extensive conversion of virgin stands to second growth may result in an increase in pest problems as it has in similar areas such as coastal British Columbia. ‍?‍?Widespread use of insecticides to control major outbreaks is not practical because of risk of contaminating salmon-spawning and trout-rearing streams; but insecticide use may be justified in local, high value areas. Weather, diseases, and parasites control outbreaks naturally. Damage-prone stands should be identified and harvested before insect attack or salvage-logged following outbreaks. Ideally, second-growth stands should be managed for resistance to insect pests.