Voices from the Flats – Salmon, Trees, and We: The Tongass
Photo by Joel Brady-Power
This photo was taken in Sitka, but could be almost anywhere in Southeast Alaska. The Tongass National Forest blankets most of our region, a crazy quilt of western red cedar, Sitka spruce, and western hemlock that covers almost 17 million acres. Not only is the Tongass the largest national forest in the US, it’s also the largest temperate rainforest remaining in the world. About 70,000 people call the Tongass home – as do 30,000 bears. This rare ecosystem also supports deer, wolves, over 300 species of birds, and all 5 species of salmon: chinook, coho, sockeye, chum, and pink.
When we talk about protecting wild salmon, our national dialogue is heavy on fisheries management and healthy oceans. Essential elements, but incomplete. These ocean swimmers begin and end their lives in freshwater, including 17,690 miles of streams, lakes and ponds in the Tongass. If we promote sustainable fisheries without placing equal value on salmon habitat, both are at risk.
One of my fellow fishermen, Karl Jordan, published an editorial in the Juneau Empire yesterday: “Forest Service Budget Just Doesn’t Add Up.” (Available here.) Karl examined the annual funding for habitat conservation/restoration ($1.5 million) and logging/road development ($25 million). Quite a discrepancy – especially when you note that timber-related jobs number less than 200, compared to over 7000 fisheries-related jobs.
A fourth-generation fisherman, Karl’s profiled here in Amy Gulick’s tribute to the Tongass, Salmon in the Trees. He’s a powerful advocate for salmon, speaking from a place of deep love for Southeast Alaska, the Tongass, and commercial fishing.
Photo by Jon Corbett
That’s the place that I speak from, too. Life as a harvester is, for me, inherently bound to life as a conservationist. I believe it’s my responsibility to protect what I love. And between the photo at the top of this post, the many joys of our life at sea, and the honor of hand-delivering these gorgeous fish to our customers, I can’t even begin to count all of the ways I love salmon and trees.
If you speak from this place, too, please join me in quick, easy activism for salmon. If you support increased funding for salmon programs and habitat restoration in the Tongass, please email Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell (ttidwell@fs.fed.us) with your message. It doesn’t have to be long, but it does have to be received by December 16th to weigh in on 2012′s budget planning.
Not sure what to say? Karl’s editorial, here, is a great resource. And, below is a copy of my letter to Undersecretary Harris Sherman, which you’re also welcome to use as a resource. Whether your livelihood depends on the well-being of the Tongass, or your life is richer knowing that wild places like this still exist in our world, thank you for joining me in this effort.
December 1, 2011
Undersecretary of Natural Resources Harris Sherman
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave. S.W.
Washington, D.C.
Dear Undersecretary Sherman,
My name is Tele Aadsen, and I’m a second-generation salmon troller in Southeast Alaska. Salmon trollers are predominantly family operations; I began fishing at the age of seven, in 1984. My mother was one of a handful of female skippers at that time, and we comprised the only all-female troller. For the past 7 years my partner and I have run our own boat, the 43-foot Nerka, which he grew up on and took over as a 22 year old. Hook-and-line caught, we process and freeze our catch at sea, self-marketing a premium quality wild salmon to restaurants, grocers, and food co-ops across the U.S. This is our sole source of income.
Discussion of salmon sustainability frequently focuses on fisheries management and healthy oceans. Essential elements, yet incomplete. We must devote equal attention to the surrounding forests, which provide critical salmon habitat. In its streams, lakes, and ponds, the Tongass National Forest provides 17,690 miles of salmon habitat. Salmon are inextricably linked with the Tongass; the well-being of one directly impacts the other.
In Alaska, salmon mean far more than a meal or a paycheck. In a 2007 survey, 96% of Alaskans said salmon are essential to our way of life. In our remote region, where many communities are island-based, closed systems, the term “way of life” refers more to practical necessity than sentimentality. Nearly 90% of rural households in Southeast Alaska depend on salmon.
What does a dependency on salmon look like? It looks like over 7000 jobs: men, women, and young people working on fishing vessels or in processing plants. In a tremendous ripple effect, fisheries contribute to local economies. In some of Southeast Alaska’s small communities, salmon are the local economy. Grocers, restaurants, hotels, cold storages and transport systems all flourish with healthy salmon runs. The combined economic value of commercial, sports, and subsistence salmon fishing, plus hatchery operations, is estimated at $986.1 million.
The economic impact of salmon doesn’t stop at Alaska’s border. Many fishermen spend the off-season in the Lower 48, enhancing the economy of multiple states. In 2009, my partner and I were able to purchase our first home in Washington, where we frequently have boat work done. Maintaining a safe, successful fishing vessel is an expensive, on-going effort: all across the West Coast, harbors, boat yards, diesel mechanics, refrigeration services, craftsmen, fiberglass workers, metal fabricators, gear stores, and other marine service professionals are direct beneficiaries of our good salmon seasons.
Beyond these enormous economic considerations, the Tongass is one of the few remaining wild places in America, a rare ecosystem of deep cultural significance, beauty and wonder. I’m profoundly grateful for my life as a commercial fisherman, and hope to continue providing quality wild salmon to Americans in a responsible manner. I’m committed to protecting the natural resources that allow this unique profession, and want to thank you, Undersecretary Sherman, for joining me in this effort. Thank you for advocating for a healthy, sustainable future, prioritizing funding for watershed restoration and salmon habitat in the Tongass.
Sincerely,
Tele Aadsen, MSW
F/V Nerka
It is a bit difficult to convert areas in acres to areas in square kilometers but I did a quick such check and if my assumptions are correct I have some bad news for everyone.
When I tried to calculate the area of the Tongass NF in Km^2 I got 25,888. That is a goodly chunk of territory. Then I looked at rates of deforestation here in the Amazon basin. Since 1977 year to year close to half the area of Tongass has been deforested in the Amazon. In 1995 and 2004 more than the entire area of the Tongass was cut down and burnt in the Amazon. Since anyone began to pay any attention, nearly 3/4 of a million square kilometers of rainforest have been destroyed. More than twenty seven times the entire Tongass.
I don’t bring up this information to depreciate the significance of the Tongass, it is a unique ecosystem that would merit preservation regardless of any comparison of loss ratios. My intent is rather to raise awareness that in the wider world, things are happening that will ultimately affect us all. To be forthcoming, I must also report that for the last two years Brasil has reduced the rate of deforestation to about 11,000 square kilometers.
Aboutr 1/4 of the Amazon rain forest has been destroyed in the past 35 years or so.
i think the Harkonnens will not rest until this jewel we call the earth becomes Gieddi Prime.
Even those of us who are aware of the devastation of the Amazon are appreciative of your post. There’s actually a fair comparison between what happens in Alaska and what happens in Brasil.
Much of the destroyed rainforest in Brasil has been turned into grazing land to raise cattle. Why cattle on land that was once rainforest? So McDonalds can sell its burgers for five cents less than the price might be did were that cheap beef not available. Topsoil (which is often 2 cm deep) be damned.
Much of the destroyed salmon (caught as bycatch by the pollock trawlers, and thrown back into the ocean, dead, as trash) lost their lives so a McDonalds filet-o-fish sandwich can be made of dirt cheap pollock. McDonalds is not the only environmentally destructive corporation, just one of the most successful.
Think about this the next time you visit the drive-thru, or, better yet, drive past.
How did that superfluous did get into the third sentence of my second paragraph? Please ignore it so the sentence will read as if written in English by a native speaker!
Fromthediagonal, I’m also clinging to hope and belief in personal impact, even if the only certain impact is that I feel better in my own skin for having said my piece. I hope that fate’s willing, the creeks don’t rise, and you and your grandson come back to Southeast soon. 🙂
Mud-buddies, thanks so much for the discussion and the advocacy! Happy remaining weekend, all.
The reason i asked about Tom Tidwell is because i did not know if he was an appointment of the guv,which would make me suspicious of him. Since I have been informed he seems to have come up through the ranks,he is probably above suspicion. That makes an easier decision as to what to say to him in any conversation. I’d love to see the Tongass except I get confused easily with so many different species of trees and fish and them ever pesky bears. If you would live trap all bears and remove them for a week or two,I’d gladly come up for a look around.Us Iowans may be chickens,but we ain’t gay chickens-at least I’m not and I’m sure the rest aren’t.
Mike- there is an excellent small museum in Ketchikan that has a “Walk thru the Tongrass Forest”, I found it very informative and well laid out; easy ramps for those with walking difficulties, They have non-moving bears, and no mosquitoes ! Short walk from the dock, and a MUCH better use of time than browsing thru a souvenir shop ! I found the display about “fire trees” quite interesting,
Also, too, I know a good guide company if you ever decide you can do the Admiralty Island bear viewing thingy. Kinda up close but safe. Mostly 🙂
What a beautiful photograph! If only we could, as a species, learn to treasure and protect our wilderness areas instead of wanting to tromp on them. . . .
The figures Mr Jordan points out are ones to pay attention to. THe SE still has 5 spieces of wild salmon that can be caught in large enough quanities most times to warrent the effort, not something many parts of AK can claim.
We in Bristol Bay have lost most of our King and Coho runs over the last 5-10 years! Even our chum runs are sad!
Take care of what you have. Demand the monies go to the resources that keep the jobs in the area.
Thanks for sharing this with all of us!
UgaVic, you said it all in the third paragraph: Take care of what you have.
I shall write the letters. Not that one letter will do any good, but it will make me feel better to know that I have done what I can. EarthJustice is my charity, and I shall do what I can to help keep this awe inspiring landscape remain a haven for wildlife, both of the air, land and sea creatures.
Tourism in all of its forms seems to be less intrusive than logging and mining, even though the hordes of cruise ship visitors we observed are intimidating. My young grandson and I spent two weeks in the Juneau area. It was not nearly enough, and he is asking when we will return.
Given my age, all I can say: Fate willing and the creeks don’t rise…
My point is, while many tourists may see this as a kind of zoological/geological exhibit (bears in August, feeding upon the salmon swimming upstream to spawn, glaciers calving in the afternoon), it also gives them some small understanding of the life cycle of the area, and thus promotes protection by the next generation which was impressionable when they saw it during their formative years.
Yeah, I am an optimist! Which is why I am writing and signing any letter that promotes preservation of what we have left, and restoration of previously abused habitats.
I have to ask, why are the King and Coho runs declining? Has anybody done any research on it?
My interest is two fold. Whenever an apex predator begins to suffer and decline in numbers it usually means something lower down in the food chain has gotten out of whack. Secondly the primary argument against Pebble mine is centered on the salmon habitat that it would endanger. If there are already problems with salmon habitat that might argue for or against the mine depending on what they are.
Full disclosure: I am an exploration geologist in the metals and precious stones fields. But I am also very much in favor of responsible development. In my opinion Pebble as proposed is not an acceptable development because the waste treatment plan is ludicrous. I am also a realist. Such a treasure trove of mineral wealth is going to be exploited. The bottom line is, will that be done in a fashion that is sufficiently cognizant of the external costs? If it is, it will have a definate impact on the profitability of the mine. That is the only issue in a sense. The mine will be profitable no matter what, the only question is will a large part of that profit be taken by a few people at the expense to the wider community who will possibly lose everything? Or will the cost of the damage to other parts of the economy and ecosystem be deducted from the equation that makes the mine such a high priority with its owners?
Is Tom Tidwell a “good guy” that can be trusted or is he a plant from the guv’s office?
http://www.fs.fed.us/aboutus/chief/
Mr Tidwell is the federal US Forest Service chief.
Good guy? Who knows.
USFS has some great folks but the whole shebang has been such a political football in the last 20 years who knows about any of the moving goalposts they are supposed to serve and protect?
Must be all the fresh air here or something but I just realized Iowa doesn’t have a National Forest at all ( duh! ) so you may well not have much idea about the National Forest mission statement.
http://www.fs.fed.us/aboutus/mission.shtml
Like I said USFS has a lot of great people but it’s the agency POV and/or the politicos’ POV which drives action.
The notion of sustainable multiple use of public lands and the trying to make it real has undergone major shifts in the last 20 years. Here in a community, bounded by the Tongass it’s a part of everyday life- the arguments . I forget . Hope this helps frame the situation better for you.
Thanks for this, Pi! Very true that our multiple use values – and the base fact that several dozen communities sit squarely in the midst of the national forest – are a little bit special. I also forget to start with this. Must be a case of not seeing the forest for the…
Sorry! Couldn’t help it! 😉
Thank you, Tele, and thanks to Joel and Jon for the photos. Karl’s editorial was well worth reading, although some of the commenters were quite rude.
Actually the comments are pretty mild for what is a very contentious argument here ie: multiple use philosophy and how it shakes out in resource management in National Forests.
That being said- yes, it is an excellent editorial.
And yes, thank you Tele et al.
Emailing Tidwell in short order.