32 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



DESTRUCTION BY FIRE IN THE TONGASS NATIONAL FOREST 



Portions of the Tongass National Forest have such a good distribution of rainfall during the summer that in ordinary seasons there is relatively 

 little danger from lire. Those portions of the forest, however, on the coast, particularly at the head of the long inlets, have a much smaller 

 rainfall and are exposed to a serious fire hazard. Occasionally, as during the past season, other portions of the forest become dry and over 

 extensive areas are inflamable, requiring effective patrol to prevent serious damage. 



pete with the outside material. At the present time also 

 there is a great depression in fir on the coast, due to over- 

 stocking the market, and lumber is being sold at very 

 low prices. Labor costs are much higher in Alaska than 

 in the States, an item that in many cases enables coast 

 mills under present conditions to compete in the north. 

 But very important also is the fact that the lumber indus- 

 try has not yet been developed in the west Alaskan for- 

 ests on a scale to enable competition with the great mills 

 t<> the south. The increased demands for forest prod- 

 ucts will bring a development of manufacturing plants 

 to supply it; the adjustment of economic conditions in 

 Alaska will bring the cost of labor nearer to that in the 

 States. The recovery of the lumber markets of the 

 States will prohibit selling prime lumber at sacrifice 

 prices. Transportation facilities will be developed so 

 that lumber can be shipped short distances at reasonable 

 rates. Then the local forest material that is equally suit- 

 able with outside lumber for the industrial needs of the 

 region will be used instead of imported material. This 

 process will take place both on the Tongass and on the 

 Chugach Forest, for the resources are of sufficient 

 quantity and of the required quality. 



FORESTS OF THE INTERIOR 



The interior of Alaska has climatic conditions very 

 different from the southern coast, and a correspondingly 

 very different character of forest growth. A short grow- 

 in},' season of great intensity, a light rainfall, and a cold 

 soil arc factors that restrict the species to a few of the 

 hardiest kinds, and produce a forest of slow growth and 

 light yield. The dominant species are white spruce, white 



birch and cottonwood. The spruce grows heaviest on 

 the flat lands, where it is often in pure stands over con- 

 siderable areas or is mixed with cottonwood or birch. 

 On the hill slopes the birch predominates, and frequently 

 forms pure stands. In the swamps the white spruce is 

 often replaced by black spruce, growing alone or with 

 willows, and in places having a mixture of tamarack. 

 Aspen and willows constitute a minor growth, coming 

 upon newly formed river bars or on burned areas. 



The largest and most valuable tree is the white spruce. 

 Its average size is from 6 to 10 inches, its maximum sel- 

 dom over 18 inches in diameter. Sometimes the spruce 

 reaches a height of 90 to 100 feet, more often it is from 

 50 to 70 feet high. Cottonwood reaches similar dimen- 

 sions, but birch is smaller by some 20 to 30 per cent. As 

 is evident from the size of the oldest trees, the growth 

 is exceedingly slow, due to the cold soil and short grow- 

 ing season. The timber is often knotty and the lumber, 

 as compared to that produced in the States, is of infe- 

 rior quality. 



The forests are one of the most vital factors in the 

 development of the interior of Alaska. They are abso- 

 lutely necessary in the establishment and building up of 

 the chief industries, mining and agriculture, essential 

 in the construction and maintenance of pioneer roads 

 and trails, and their presence is an indispensable element 

 in making the country habitable. 



The value of the interior forests should not be gauged 

 by the size and quality of the trees for lumber, or their 

 place for possible use in the general lumber markets of 

 the Pacific coast. They have rather an economic value 

 as a local necessity that can be measured by contrasting 

 the development that will take place with their aid, with 



