TREES OF LIFE:FORESTS IN PERIL
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July 24th, 2015

7/24/2015

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The debate on environmental issues is continuing to occupying more and more time on the daily news programs. Most scientists are reasonably in agreement of the issues we face. As we have reported before, the number one issue is population expansion and number three is deforestation. To think we can control population increase is unrealistic. We are working diligently to improve our medical treatments and  searching for ways to control a variety of illnesses so we will live longer. Medical science and technology advances and adds to the population expansion dilemma. Today there is less than half the acreage of forests that once existed on the planet. Our demand for forest products continues and will increase as the population increases. Yet many of our politicians refuse to accept the impact humans have had on our environment over the past 400 years. Controlling population numbers and reducing our demand for goods and services our forests provide is unrealistic, we are left with but one option, management. The past 100 years has focused on a sustainable supply of products from our remaining forested lands. Scientific forestry has focused on managing the resources from the forests and reclaiming abandoned agricultural lands with plantations. These plantations are single species and single age-class trees usually planted way to close and frequently non-indigenous to the location. We keep searching for genetically superior plants that will increase monetary returns, even-though natural diversity is lost or destroyed.
Our population continues to expand, more and more people are squeezed into urban living and our ability to read and understand our natural surroundings is disappearing. Today, people on the North American continent demand 5 times more land to provide for their affluent life style, than is available for each person on the planet. How long can this scenario continue? Maybe it is time to consider, more carefully, who we elect to represent us in Congress! Maybe it is time to start educating our population on what it means to live in balance with our surroundings! Maybe we have got to change the management goals for our remaining forested lands! Maybe it is time to reflect on what we have done to our human environment and search for a life style that recognizes we need to make some adjustments, so there will be a future!        
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                CHANGING OUR OLD WAYS IS DIFFICULT!              

7/12/2015

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I continue to follow several worldwide forestry issues on linkedin and it becomes evident that changing the course of management on our remaining forested lands will take considerable time and effort. Recently there has been much discussion on sustainable forestry. Many suggest that replanting our abandoned agricultural lands with single age, single non-indigenous species can offer a short cut to sustainability. History provides numerous examples of devastating negative results when we attempt to manipulate mother nature with non-indigenous plants and animals. This type of management invariably results in upsetting the natural balance of the environment involved and produces long range problems which a difficult, if possible, to resolve. Another unacceptable effect is the destruction of natural diversity that occurs with in the particular eco-system. Some how we have got to quite this quest to force mother nature to produce more products and services, and assist nature to provide healthy diverse forest communities that will provide for our own species survival in the future. With proper management, healthy diverse forest communities will continue to produce the produces and services we consider necessary to support our thurst for an affluent life style.
     On a happier note, Iris and I meet with the Montcalm Community College and they are excited to work together to develop environmental education materials for use in the public schools. Our goal is to help younger students begin to appreciate the connection we share with our natural surroundings and how important it is to connect this wisdom the the science of natural resource management. If you have any thoughts or ideas please feel free to share them with us, as we move forward. This website has an email connection where you can reach us.   

 
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