Trump Administration Cuts U.S. Forest Service in Alaska

0:00It's April 15th. This is Anchorage News Today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story. Two weeks back, the Trump administration dropped a major shake-up for the U.S. Forest Service, announcing closures of regional offices and most. Research labs with the National Headquarters shifting to Utah, Alaska, home to the nation's two biggest national forests, the 17 million acre tangas, and the 5.4 million acre chewgush got hit with. Some direct losses, like the Anchorage Forest Resciences Laboratory, and the Pacific Northwest Research Station in Portland, Oregon. Details on broader effects to those massive forests remain fogging, though the Alaska Regional Office in Juneau faces replacement by a smaller state. Office Secretary Brooke Rollins laid out the plan last year. In a July 24th, 2025 memo, aiming to streamline operations amid ongoing. Senator Lisa Murkowski and her team are digging into facts right now, gearing up to

1:01defend forest service work in Alaska through Congress's money. Process. She chairs the key appropriations subcommittee for interior and environment issues. Those labs do critical research on everything from yellow-seater decline in the tangas to bear impacts from recreation and rural access to wild foods. In the chewguch, supporting not just feds, but states, universities, and native groups too. This follows heavy employee losses already. 5,860 jobs gone from 35,550 in the first half. Of 2025, as Alaska pushes back the budget battles, we'll see if these forests keep their full support or if more changes roll and stay tuned for how it shakes out.