by the U.S. Federal Government as “trust” Indian land and those lands assigned to individuals are referred to as individually owned Native allotments, and the individual owners are referred to as “allottees”. Management of many of these allotments is performed through P.L. 93-638 self-governance compacts with the U.S. Department of the Interior. The IFMAT IV assessment in applying the National Indian Forest Resource Management Act (NIFRMA) mandates addressing the federal government’s trust responsibility. Trust lands in Alaska are made up of allotments and these allotments are scattered throughout the state with little or no opportunities for active management. Recent attempts to enter carbon projects for trust allotment owners have stalled and the BIA issued on November 4, 2022, a National Policy Memorandum on Carbon Sequestration Agreement Policy to clarify the Bureau’s role. Top Priorities in Alaska ■ Traditional and cultural foods remain the highest priority and subsistence harvest and gathering is a number one concern. In many areas moose numbers have declined, caribou herds that were once large have been reduced by disease and have migrated to areas outside of the tribes’ reach. Fish numbers were down in some areas and are being impacted by commercial harvesting. ■ Lack of staffing is an issue in Alaska, specifically professional forestry staff and particularly tribal members on the tribal side as well as with the BIA.
A wildfire fuels break operation conducted by the Chugachmiut community in Alaska. PHOTO CREDIT: ADRIAN LEIGHTON
■ Recurring TPA funds initially identified on a per-forested- allotment-acre basis is not sufficient to hire and retain professional forestry staff. This is a top priority for the nonprofit tribal organizations that have compacted or contracted for trust services in Alaska. ■ Reducing fuels to protect homes and allotment acres from wildfire. ■ Lack of markets and infrastructure for forest products. ■ Some areas have used biomass to assist in heating homes and community buildings to provide backup for high fuel costs. ■ In most areas firewood is management of this resource needs to be considered when conducting thinning and stand improvement projects. ■ Fire suppression has become more difficult and there are more fires showing up where historically there was little to no activity. Changing climate has made new challenges the most valuable forest product and long-term
affecting permafrost, increasing melting, and
forcing some villages to move due to ice dams and flooding around the communities. These impacts will require adaptive management practices, planning and active implementation to mitigate the impacts. ■ Recently there is increasing emphasis on working with adjacent lands and doing co- management and landscape- scale projects. These projects could be an opening for entering into a Tribal Forest Protection Act (TFPA) and/ or a Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) type collaborative. ■ IFMAT IV found that an Alaska assessment is warranted as this area is significantly different than the lower 48 states in land area, management needs, challenges, and opportunities, and that the Native owners and lands would benefit from an Alaska-specific assessment.
Additional background information and details regarding Alaska can be found in Appendix xii.
50 Assessment of Indian Forests and Forest Management in the United States
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