Saving the Tsongas National Forest - A Reply from My Senator

[yellerpup]

Thank you for contacting me regarding your concern for the Tongass National Forest and your opposition to S. 881, the Southeast Alaska Native Land Entitlement Finalization Act. This bill, also known as the "Sealaska Bill," would transfer lands in the Tongass National Forest to the Sealaska Corporation for private development such as logging. I will oppose this legislation when it comes up for a vote.
Officially known as the Tongass/Stikine National Forest, this unique, 17 million acre pristine forest in southeastern Alaska is an important American natural resource. Created by President Theodore Roosevelt more than 100 years ago, the Tongass is home to numerous endangered species of plants and animals that attract more than 1 million visitors each year.

The Tongass National Forest, one of the last temperate rainforests in the world, should remain in public hands to be preserved for future generations. I have already taken steps to protect this threatened area, cosponsoring S. 1738, the Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2009. This bill ensures the protection of more than 55 million acres of national forest from road-building, logging, and other environmentally damaging development.

This natural landscape, with trees that are more than 500 years old, includes the world's largest concentration of Bald Eagles and must be preserved for future generations to enjoy. I will continue to work with my colleagues in Congress to ensure that the Tongass is protected.


Thank you again for writing to express your concerns, and I hope that you keep in touch with my office regarding future legislation. For more information on this and other important issues, please visit my website at http://gillibrand.senate.gov and sign up for my e-newsletter.

[virgogal]

1. I thought Paul Tsongas had a national forest named after him,which

would have been rather strange.

[yellerpup]

3. I should have added an extra 's'.

Sorry! :blush:

[virgogal]

5. Don't be sorry----I'm the mistake maker of the universe. :-)

[Yunomi]

2. When I first joined the 'environmental' movement in 1971,

one of the big fights was saving the Tongass from loggers. Here it is 2010, almost 40 years later, and we're fighting the same fight. Corporations NEVER give up, until they've wrung the last dollar out of the last tree.

[yellerpup]

4. You are so right.

And I thought our protests against the VietNam War had put an end to American aggression. No, it never ends and it is because the corporations just keep coming up with new ways to rob us of our past and our future. :hi:

[glitch]

6. Cancer never sleeps, so neither can we. nt