The Boat Company's Conservation Efforts

Until recently, Alaska's economy ran on natural resources. Renewable and unrenewable. Its largest private employers are the fishing and tourism industries. The former has been more or less stable, while the latter has grown substantially.

Timber, however, has faced more difficult times. From private lands, the product has been the sale of unprocessed logs for export (few jobs for the value of the resource removed). On public lands, substantial Government (taxpayer) subsidies have been necessary to make the industry economical (wood fiber grows more quickly in warmer climes).

There are inherent potential conflicts between fishing/tourism and timbering, i.e., remove too many trees from a particular area and not only will erosion occur (damage to spawning streams) but those places are lost to tourism as well (clear cuts are not a beautiful sight).

The management of The Boat Company is convinced there are resources enough for all, as long as decisions are based on long vs. short-term considerations.

Obviously, the land has a limit to its carrying capacity. If two or three times as many people want to live, see and/or work in Southeast Alaska, then the current type and quality of life it provides its residents and visitors probably cannot be sustained.

Since Southeast Alaska contains the last substantial remnants of the earth's temperate rainforests, it is our hope that the major portions of what remains will be conserved for future generations to enjoy (whales, wildlife, people, "other critters", et. al.). Since we plan to be in business for a long time to come, we consider it an important goal to work toward that result.