John,

Chickadees and kinglets flit about the canopies of 800 year-old Sitka Spruce. A mother grizzly bear ambles down the slope, two bouncing cubs in tow -- today she will teach them to catch salmon in the nearby bay.

Welcome to the Tongass National Forest.

Spanning across southeast Alaska, the Tongass is the world's largest intact temperate rainforest -- but it won't be for long if the logging companies get their way.1

On Giving Tuesday, your gift to Environment Colorado will be matched up to $40,000 nationwide. Join us in defending the Tongass.

Encompassing snow-capped mountains, sweeping fjords and lush islands, this "crown jewel" of the national forest system supports a vast array of wildlife including flying squirrels, sandhill cranes and the elusive Alexander Archipelago gray wolf.2,3

The timber industry is targeting the same old-growth and mature trees that shelter nesting songbirds and store over 9.9 billion tons of carbon.4

The Forest Service has already approved a logging project that will cut down 430 acres of old-growth trees. More logging projects targeting old-growth and mature trees throughout our national forests, including the Tongass, are pending right now.5

The Tongass is irreplaceable and you can help save it. Until midnight tonight, generous donors will match your gift up to $40,000 nationwide. Donate today.

Our advocacy for the Tongass spans decades.

Alongside environmental groups across the country, our national network helped secure the Roadless Rule in 2001, which safeguarded 58.5 million acres of American forests from road construction and timber harvesting.6

But our work is far from over. Much of the Tongass remains open for logging and we need your help to protect the "lungs of North America."

There is never a bad day to help the Tongass, but today your donation goes even further. Donate before midnight and generous donors will double your gift.

This means we'll have twice the resources to bring together forest-lovers, engage the public, and remind our politicians to protect these natural treasures. Donate today.

Thank you,

Ellen Montgomery

1. "Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes Protections for Tongass National Forest," U.S. Department of Agriculture, January 25, 2023.
2. Ellen Montgomery, "Threatened Forests," Environment America, May 19, 2023.
3. Katrina Liebich, "Rainforest Wolves of Alaska's Alexander Archipelago," U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, last accessed November 12, 2024.
4. Juliet Eilperin, "This tree has stood here for 500 years. Will it be sold for $17,500?," The Washington Post, December 30, 2021.
5. Ellen Montgomery, "Threatened Forests," Environment America, May 19, 2023.
6. Ellen Montgomery, "What is the roadless rule and what does it mean for the Tongass?," Environment America Research & Policy Center, January 25, 2024.

Your donation will be used to support all of our campaigns to protect the environment, from saving the bees and protecting public lands, to standing up for clean water and fighting climate change. None of our work would be possible without supporters like you. Environment Colorado may transfer up to $50 per dues-paying member per year into the Environment Colorado Small Donor Committee.