Mon, 10 Feb 2003
Alaska Center for the Environment ace@akcenter.org

Alaska’s Tongass and Chugach National Forests are currently threatened by a package of legislative "riders" that have been proposed in the US Congress, and we need your help. “Riders” are a procedural maneuver where a proposal is attached to a bigger, must-pass bill in order to circumvent the normal debate and consideration process. In this case, anti-forest riders have been attached to the omnibus spending bill that is needed to fund the federal government for FY 2003.†

If passed, this current spending bill (with anti-conservation riders) would:

1) EXEMPT the Chugach and Tongass National Forests from the widely-supported Roadless Areas Conservation Rule (which was upheld by U.S. Federal court in December). The Bush Administration is planning more than 40 large industrial timber sales for Tongass National Forest roadless areas. If this rider passes, timber companies will begin to log through remaining pristine Tongass rainforest almost immediately, leaving the fate of the Tongass of the timber up to the industry.

2) Allow the timber industry to log more trees in the Tongass National Forest, including the largest and most ancient trees and in critical wildlife habitat areas. Not only would this devastate the Tongass ecosystem, it would greatly increase taxpayer subsidies to timber companies.

3) Prevent conservationists from challenging in court Forest Service decisions limiting wilderness protection status for parts of the Tongass National Forest.

We cannot allow this by-pass of the public process to destroy Alaska’s National Forests.

The Tongass and Chugach need your IMMEDIATE HELP! Please contact Members of Congress (see below) and write a letter to the editor to oppose attacks on Alaskaís National Forests. Our Alaska Congressional delegation is over-riding the public process and, once again, attempting to give the Tongass to the timber industry. Time is of the essence.

Here are 3 things you can do:

1) Please make 3 calls right now:

Senator Tom Daschle (D, SD), Phone: 202-224-2321; Fax: 224-7895 tom_daschle@daschle.senate.gov

Senator Harry Reid (D, NV), Phone: 202-224-3542; Fax: 202-224-7327; website only -- www.reid.senate.gov

Senator Byron Dorgan (D, ND) Phone: 202-224-2551; Fax: 202-224-1193; senator@dorgan.senate.gov

2) Please send in a LETTER TO THE EDITOR to criticize these attacks on the Chugach/Tongass by our Alaska delegation:

Anchorage Daily News letters@adn.com (250 words or less, include address and contact phone numbers to verify)

Washington Post letters@washpost.com (must be exclusive to the post, include address/phone numbers for verification)

Peninsula Clarion clarion@alaska.net

Fairbanks Daily News Miner, letters@newsminer.com (limited to 350 words, address and daytime phone number to verify) Juneau Empire, streed@juneauempire.com (letters must not exceed 400 words, include your contact info).

For more information, please contact:
Alaska Center for the Environment 274-3665 (Michelle Wilson)

National Wildlife Federation: 258-4808, (Scott Anaya)
Sierra Club: 276-4044 (Betsy Goll)

Learn more: Alaska Rainforest Campaign: http://www.akrain.org