Tongass Advisory Committee Seeking Nominations

Tongass Advisory Committee Seeking Nominations

Events, Trainings & Opportunities
See information below, courtesy of the National Forest Foundation:   The Tongass National Forest recently established the Tongass Advisory Committee and is currently seeking nominations.  Please consider applying or share with your organization or within your community. The Tongass Advisory Committee (TAC) will play a key role in USDA’s effort to transition the Tongass from a timber program focused on old growth to one based primarily on young growth. The TAC will be solely advisory in nature, advising the Secretary of Agriculture, through the Chief of the Forest Service, by providing advice and recommendations for developing an ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable forest management strategy on the Tongass National Forest.   Recommendations and advice may directly inform modification of the 2008 Tongass Land Management Plan. All activities of the Committee will…
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USFS Tier II Protocol Training Opportunity

USFS Tier II Protocol Training Opportunity

Events, Trainings & Opportunities
USFS Tier II Protocol training | Sitka, AK | April 2014   Tier II is one method of quantifying the quality of stream habitat for spawning and rearing salmonids. It focuses on stream and channel morphology, and pool-forming structures in streams. Among agencies and funding organizations, it is a well-accepted approach. Therefore, by being trained in Tier II, you will be able to provide credible information and/or have a good understanding to advocate for stream restoration projects.   This training is appropriate for any group interested in or actively partnering with federal / state / municipal agencies, or private landowners on stream restoration projects.   Scott Harris, Conservation Science Director with Sitka Conservation Society, has talked with the Tongass National Forest and they are excited to conduct a Tier II…
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Sitka Conservation Society to Assess Effectiveness of Salmon Habitat Restoration

Sitka Conservation Society to Assess Effectiveness of Salmon Habitat Restoration

Community Watershed Stewardship
The Sitka Conservation Society has received funding to being a monitoring project that will assess the effectiveness of salmon habitat restoration projects on the Tongass National Forest on Prince of Wales Island. This monitoring project will take a "Triple Bottom Line" approach, addressing  environmental, economic, and social values to bolster the project's overall impact to support developing resilient Southeast Alaska communities.   More about this project from SCS below:   [gview file="https://www.alaskawatershedcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Salmon-Habitat-Monitoring-annoucement.pdf"]     [caption id="attachment_4008" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Scott Harris of SCS surveys a stream in Hoonah for restoration opportunities[/caption]   For more information on this project, contact: Scott Harris, Conservation Science Director Sitka Conservation Society 907.738.4091 scott@sitkawild.org
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Assessing Food Security in Kake

Assessing Food Security in Kake

Community Watershed Stewardship
  Post written by Lia Heifetz   [caption id="attachment_4233" align="aligncenter" width="611"] Kake youth learn fish processing techniques at this summer’s Culture Camp[/caption] This fall, residents of Kake participated in a focus group to understand where opportunities exist to improve local wild food gathering and harvesting. The goal of this focus group was to determine which future cooperative efforts and direct investments in resources may improve the ease and efficiency of local gathering and harvesting. Constructive and instructive feedback was heard from seven Kake residents who participated in gathering wild foods. The dominant topic of discussion was the subsistence harvest of sockeye salmon. Due to high prices of fuel, the cost of harvesting sockeye salmon under current procedures may not make sense financially and environmentally. Changes to make the process more…
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