Biden administration to restore protections for U.S.' largest national forest

The Biden administration moved Thursday to reverse a Trump-imposed policy that opened major areas of the U.S.' largest national forest, the Tongass National Forest in Alaska, to logging and road development. The U.S. Department of Agriculture also said it intends to end large-scale old growth timber sales in the area. 

The forest was originally protected by the 2001 Roadless Rule, which bans logging and road development in certain parts of the country. But in his final months in office, Trump exempted the forest from the rule.  In a Thursday notice, the White House said the administration would look to "repeal or replace" that exemption.