THE SCIENCE OF FORESTRY
I GRADUATED FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA WITH A DEGREE IN FORESTRY AND SPEND THE NEXT 34 YEARS WITH THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, FOREST SERVICE, IN VARIOUS ASSIGNMENTS THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES. MY 29 YEARS OF RETIREMENT HAVE FOCUSED ON EVALUATING MY EXPERIENCES AND OBSERVATIONS PLUS RESEARCHING NEW INFORMATION ON HUMANITY’S CONNECTION TO THE NATURAL WORLD.
I HAVE WRITTEN THREE BOOKS AND POSTED OVER ONE HUNDRED ARTICLES ON MY CONCERNS FOR THE SCIENCE OF FORESTRY. I KEEP THINKING BACK TO MY TIME AT THE UNIVERSITY AND WHAT I STUDIED AND LEARNED ABOUT FORESTRY. THERE WERE COURSES IN DENDROLOGY, MENSURATION, HYDROLOGY, SOILS SCIENCE, RANGE MANAGEMENT, AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY, WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT, ENTOMOLOGY, CLIMATOLOGY AND MORE. WHAT I DID NOT LEARN WAS THAT FOREST COVERED LANDS WERE A LARGE PART OF THE NATURAL WORLD. I AM SURE THERE HAVE BEEN CHANGES AND UP-GRADES IN THE CURRICULUM'S, BUT I HAVE NEVER MET A FORESTER THAT APPEARED TO HAVE A DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF THE IMPORTANCE AND COMPLEXITY OF THE NATURAL WORLD.
A FOREST SCIENTIST, I BELIEVE, MUST UNDERSTAND THAT EARTH IS AN AMALGAMATION OF ECOSYSTEMS THAT ARE VERY SIMILAR TO FUNCTIONING COMMUNITIES. THEY ARE A UNIT WHERE A MULTITUDE OF SPECIES FUNCTION AND SUPPORT EACH-OTHER TO OBTAIN BALANCE AND SUSTAIN LIFE. MY SECOND ASSIGNMENT WITH THE FOREST SERVICE WAS AS ASSISTANT RANGER ON A DISTRICT IN SOUTHERN MISSOURI, WHERE I ATTEMPTED TO IDENTIFY AND MAP THE INDIVIDUAL COMMUNITIES FOR THE ENTIRE RANGER DISTRICT. AT THE TIME WE LABELED THEM STANDS, BUT NOW REALIZE THEY WERE INDIVIDUAL ECOSYSTEMS. AFTER COMPLETING 34 YEARS AND FIFTEEN DIFFERENT ASSIGNMENTS, I NEVER ENCOUNTERED AN ATTEMPT TO BY A FORESTER TO UNDERTAKE A SIMILAR EFFORT.
UNTIL A FOREST SCIENTIST IS ABLE TO READ THE LAND, TO IDENTIFY INDIVIDUAL FOREST COMMUNITIES AND UNDERSTAND THE COMPLEXITY OF LIFE SYSTEMS WITHIN THESE COMMUNITIES, I DO NOT BELIEVE OUR REMAINING FORESTED LANDS CAN BE PROPERLY MANAGED!
EFFORTS TO ACHIEVE ECOLOGICAL MANAGEMENT OBJECTIVES HAVE BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL, DUE TO ADVOCACY BY RESOURCE SPECIALISTS FOR THEIR AREA OF SPECIALIZATION. SOMETHING NEEDS TO CHANGE! EVEN ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE WHERE INDIVIDUAL STAFFS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR SINGLE RESOURCE PROGRAMS, HAS TENDED TO IGNORE ECOLOGICAL BALANCE AND THE SUSTENANCE OF LIFE SYSTEMS.
THESE OBSERVATIONS AND CONCERNS ARE WHAT HAS BEEN DRIVING ME TO REACH OUT IN HOPES OTHERS MIGHT UNDERSTAND THE NEED FOR CHANGE. WE ARE RAPIDLY APPROACHING THE LIMITED CARRYING CAPACITY OF OUR PLANET, AND OUR WORLD POPULATION CONTINUES TO EXPAND. OUR VALUABLE FORESTED LANDS ARE VITAL FOR OUR FUTURE, AND ADJUSTMENTS ARE REQUIRED! DEFORESTATION IS EVERY BIT AS LARGE AN ISSUES AS FOSSIL FUEL CONSUMPTION. EDUCATION OF OUR FUTURE FOREST SCIENTISTS IS INADEQUATE, AND MUST BE UP-GRADED! CURRENT MANAGEMENT PRACTICES ARE CONTINUING TO ACCELERATING THE PROBLEM!
ASK NOT WHAT YOU CAN DO TO INCREASE SUSTAINABLE FLOW OF RESOURCES FROM THE FORESTS, BUT WHAT YOU MUST DO TO MAINTAIN A SUSTAINABLE FLOW OF LIFE SUSTAINING ELEMENTS FROM HEALTHY DIVERSE FORESTS! WE MUST RECOGNIZE AND MANAGE EACH FOREST ECO-SYSTEM WHICH WILL REQUIRE MORE DETAILED AND INTENSIVE MANAGEMENT. HARVESTING LARGE ACRES OR MOUNTAIN SIDES CAN NO LONGER BE TOLERATED. AS GOES THE REMAINING FOREST COVERED LANDS, SO GOES THE HUMAN SPECIES, ALONG WITH MANY OTHER SPECIES. OUR FUTURE DEPENDS UPON IT!
I GRADUATED FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA WITH A DEGREE IN FORESTRY AND SPEND THE NEXT 34 YEARS WITH THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, FOREST SERVICE, IN VARIOUS ASSIGNMENTS THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES. MY 29 YEARS OF RETIREMENT HAVE FOCUSED ON EVALUATING MY EXPERIENCES AND OBSERVATIONS PLUS RESEARCHING NEW INFORMATION ON HUMANITY’S CONNECTION TO THE NATURAL WORLD.
I HAVE WRITTEN THREE BOOKS AND POSTED OVER ONE HUNDRED ARTICLES ON MY CONCERNS FOR THE SCIENCE OF FORESTRY. I KEEP THINKING BACK TO MY TIME AT THE UNIVERSITY AND WHAT I STUDIED AND LEARNED ABOUT FORESTRY. THERE WERE COURSES IN DENDROLOGY, MENSURATION, HYDROLOGY, SOILS SCIENCE, RANGE MANAGEMENT, AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY, WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT, ENTOMOLOGY, CLIMATOLOGY AND MORE. WHAT I DID NOT LEARN WAS THAT FOREST COVERED LANDS WERE A LARGE PART OF THE NATURAL WORLD. I AM SURE THERE HAVE BEEN CHANGES AND UP-GRADES IN THE CURRICULUM'S, BUT I HAVE NEVER MET A FORESTER THAT APPEARED TO HAVE A DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF THE IMPORTANCE AND COMPLEXITY OF THE NATURAL WORLD.
A FOREST SCIENTIST, I BELIEVE, MUST UNDERSTAND THAT EARTH IS AN AMALGAMATION OF ECOSYSTEMS THAT ARE VERY SIMILAR TO FUNCTIONING COMMUNITIES. THEY ARE A UNIT WHERE A MULTITUDE OF SPECIES FUNCTION AND SUPPORT EACH-OTHER TO OBTAIN BALANCE AND SUSTAIN LIFE. MY SECOND ASSIGNMENT WITH THE FOREST SERVICE WAS AS ASSISTANT RANGER ON A DISTRICT IN SOUTHERN MISSOURI, WHERE I ATTEMPTED TO IDENTIFY AND MAP THE INDIVIDUAL COMMUNITIES FOR THE ENTIRE RANGER DISTRICT. AT THE TIME WE LABELED THEM STANDS, BUT NOW REALIZE THEY WERE INDIVIDUAL ECOSYSTEMS. AFTER COMPLETING 34 YEARS AND FIFTEEN DIFFERENT ASSIGNMENTS, I NEVER ENCOUNTERED AN ATTEMPT TO BY A FORESTER TO UNDERTAKE A SIMILAR EFFORT.
UNTIL A FOREST SCIENTIST IS ABLE TO READ THE LAND, TO IDENTIFY INDIVIDUAL FOREST COMMUNITIES AND UNDERSTAND THE COMPLEXITY OF LIFE SYSTEMS WITHIN THESE COMMUNITIES, I DO NOT BELIEVE OUR REMAINING FORESTED LANDS CAN BE PROPERLY MANAGED!
EFFORTS TO ACHIEVE ECOLOGICAL MANAGEMENT OBJECTIVES HAVE BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL, DUE TO ADVOCACY BY RESOURCE SPECIALISTS FOR THEIR AREA OF SPECIALIZATION. SOMETHING NEEDS TO CHANGE! EVEN ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE WHERE INDIVIDUAL STAFFS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR SINGLE RESOURCE PROGRAMS, HAS TENDED TO IGNORE ECOLOGICAL BALANCE AND THE SUSTENANCE OF LIFE SYSTEMS.
THESE OBSERVATIONS AND CONCERNS ARE WHAT HAS BEEN DRIVING ME TO REACH OUT IN HOPES OTHERS MIGHT UNDERSTAND THE NEED FOR CHANGE. WE ARE RAPIDLY APPROACHING THE LIMITED CARRYING CAPACITY OF OUR PLANET, AND OUR WORLD POPULATION CONTINUES TO EXPAND. OUR VALUABLE FORESTED LANDS ARE VITAL FOR OUR FUTURE, AND ADJUSTMENTS ARE REQUIRED! DEFORESTATION IS EVERY BIT AS LARGE AN ISSUES AS FOSSIL FUEL CONSUMPTION. EDUCATION OF OUR FUTURE FOREST SCIENTISTS IS INADEQUATE, AND MUST BE UP-GRADED! CURRENT MANAGEMENT PRACTICES ARE CONTINUING TO ACCELERATING THE PROBLEM!
ASK NOT WHAT YOU CAN DO TO INCREASE SUSTAINABLE FLOW OF RESOURCES FROM THE FORESTS, BUT WHAT YOU MUST DO TO MAINTAIN A SUSTAINABLE FLOW OF LIFE SUSTAINING ELEMENTS FROM HEALTHY DIVERSE FORESTS! WE MUST RECOGNIZE AND MANAGE EACH FOREST ECO-SYSTEM WHICH WILL REQUIRE MORE DETAILED AND INTENSIVE MANAGEMENT. HARVESTING LARGE ACRES OR MOUNTAIN SIDES CAN NO LONGER BE TOLERATED. AS GOES THE REMAINING FOREST COVERED LANDS, SO GOES THE HUMAN SPECIES, ALONG WITH MANY OTHER SPECIES. OUR FUTURE DEPENDS UPON IT!