(CNN) The Trump administration is proposing opening more than 180,000 acres of the country's largest national forest, known as America's Amazon, for logging.

The Agriculture Department proposal unveiled Tuesday would allow road construction and reclassify forest area -- including "165,000 old-growth acres" -- of the huge Tongass National Forest in the panhandle of southeastern Alaska.

The forest -- about the size of West Virginia -- and region form the world's largest intact temperate rainforest. The area is a vibrant habitat for bear, eagle and salmon, plus towering old-growth cedar, hemlock and spruce. It includes Alaska's capital, Juneau, and 31 other communities.

The department said the proposal, which will be published this week, exempts Tongass from the USDA's 2001 "roadless rule," which generally bars new roads in certain areas of national forests. The proposal lays out five alternatives to the change, including leaving the roadless rule in force.

Both supporters and opponents of the proposal say it has important economic implications.

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