An Opportunity to End the Timber Wars: How Collaboration in Southeast Alaska Has Helped to Dissipate Conflict

Abstract

he Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska represents the nation’s largest National Forest, and arguably, the Forest most fraught with controversy. Over the past several decades, the region has faced conflict as the timber industry, environmentalists, commercial fishermen, subsistence users, tourists and recreational users, Native communities, and others have debated the best use of the Forest’s resources. The U.S. Forest Service (USFS), in response, was faced with a decision about how to address these conflicting interests, while meeting the agency’s multiple use mandate to manage the land for the diverse needs of present and future generations. Beginning in 2014, I traveled frequently to Southeast Alaska as part of a thirdparty facilitation team supporting a diverse stakeholder group charged with defining a path out of conflict for forest management in the region. In the next few pages, the reader will gain a sense of the history of conflict on the Tongass National Forest; an opportunity to move past conflict with incorporation of diverse viewpoints; factors contributing to successful implementation of a new approach to forest management; and challenges still facing the region. Logging the Tongass National Forest