SAFEGUARDING THE ENVIRONMENT OF THE UPPER LYNN CANAL FOR 50 YEARS

OUR MISSION

For 50 years LCC has been committed to fostering responsible stewardship of the Chilkat Valley watersheds as well as the coastal areas of the upper Lynn Canal. We monitor proposed projects that could have an impact on the integrity of local ecosystems. We work to mitigate potential environmental impacts, to build coalitions with other concerned groups, and to increase community awareness of such impacts. As we conduct our work, we recognize that we work within the boundaries of unceded Tlingit Territory, and honor the thousands of years of good land stewardship by the Tlingit people. We strive to conduct our work mindful of tribal sovereignty, the impacts of colonization, and the ongoing place-based knowledge of the Chilkat and Chilkoot tribes.

OUR WORK IN CONTEXT

Northern Southeast Alaska is an extraordinary place, and LCC works on conservation issues that impact public lands and waters throughout the region.  This landscape includes the highly productive Chilkat and Chilkoot watersheds, the Tongass National Forest, Bureau of Land Management lands, and the state managed Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve and Haines State Forest lands.  

LCC’s home base is in the spectacular Chilkat Valley, situated at the northern end of the Inside Passage, and in the gateway to the interior Yukon Territory.  The Chilkat is unique among southeast Alaskan valleys in that it links the coast and interior with a series of low, gentle mountain passes.  The Chilkat enjoys Maritime and Continental climatic influences, as well as a rain shadow effect from the rugged Chilkat and Saint Elias mountains to our south and west.  These, and many other factors help make the Chilkat quite possibly the most biologically diverse region in Alaska. 

Before colonization, the Chilkat Tlingit people were a prosperous and powerful tribe, with a territory encompassing 2.6 million acres, from what is now called Stonehouse Creek in British Columbia to Berners Bay, north of Juneau.  The mountains on either side of the great fjord were the fenceposts of Chilkat Territory.  The traditional village of Klukwan, “The Eternal Village,” is among the longest continuously inhabited indigenous villages on the continent.

The wealth of the Chilkats came from the land, water, and the low mountain passes which were their trade routes to the Interior.  These are the very factors which continue to allow the Chilkat watershed to maintain a wealth of subsistence resources and a critical refuge for biodiversity.  This biodiversity is at risk at a time known as the Sixth Mass Extinction, when global biodiversity loss is being recognized as a threat equal to, or greater than, that of climate change. LEARN MORE HERE

WEALTH STILL COMES FROM THE LAND AND WATER

Local people still rely on the biological wealth from this landscape for the health of their families and for the health of the local economy.   According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, 90% of Chilkat Valley residents utilize subsistence resources like salmon to feed their families.  The top two economic drivers in the community are commercial fishing and nature-based tourism.  Millions of visitors flock to the area annually to watch birds, bears and whales, and to enjoy the scenic beauty of the upper Lynn Canal.  The Haines Highway now follows one of the low mountain passes that has been a migration route for thousands of years.

IN SUMMARY

The greater Chilkat watershed is an incredibly biodiverse region of continental importance.  At a time of increasingly widespread climate change, biodiversity loss and land degradation,  LCC is working to elevate awareness of the unique inherent value of the Chilkat watershed, and to protect the integrity of this living landscape for the subsistence resources and the ecosystem services it provides.  

LEARN MORE about biodiversity, the Sixth Mass Extinction, and what it means for all of us.