The Biden administration on Wednesday restored protections against roads and logging across more than half of Alaska’s Tongass National Forest. Known for its bountiful salmon and breathtaking fjords, the massive trees of the largely pristine forest absorb at least 8% of all the carbon stored by the contiguous 48 states. “The old-growth timber is a carbon sink, one of the best in the world,” Joel Jackson, president of the Organized Village of Kake, said in a statement. “It’s important to OUR WAY OF LIFE — the streams, salmon, deer, and all the forest animals and plants.” The announcement finalizes an administration proposal from June of 2021 and reverses actions taken by the previous administration to open the Tongass National Forest to roads and logging in 2020. (Washington Post $, AP, New York Times $, E&E News, Anchorage Daily News, KSTK, Alaska Beacon, KTOO, CNBC, The Hill, Courthouse News, HuffPost)