The Forests
- Thread starter Northboy
- Start date
In USA, religious right has opposed each and every environmental initiative ever proposed, including global warming (they want to leave it alone), drilling in Alaska (they support it) etc. Of course they are not going to say that they want to spoil the air we breath. And i don't think they particularly want to either. But the point is, it is OK, if the air is spoiled, because their interpretation of Bible tells them that that is all part of man's dominion of earth.
Dominion, or subdue means to subjugate, conquer something. It means ruling over, but it does not mean managing. A conquerer usually does not care for the well being of the conquered, that is how it has worked out throughout history.
And that is the interpretation religious right puts on the passage. That is why many of they tend to be strong anti-environmentalists.
Even if we want to think only abut the interest of Humanity we must understand, that Humanity will not survive without biodiversity, without healthy and stabilized ecosystems. Humanity can die without «insignificant fish, bug or bird».
Therefore we must preserve the Nature ecosystems.
All of these words – only for the most popular in the society anthropocentric way of thinking.
But I think that the most correctly to speak about all these stuff (preservation of wild life, environmental protection, etc.) on the assumption of principles of bioethic. The main of these is – every alive creature has right to live. So… we must aim to the compromise between interests of Humanity (real necessity) and the interest of Nature.
Not true. Most planting to day resembles what was cut. Most cut blocks will have two or three types of trees planted. They even plant alder on the coast mixed in with fir and cedar.
In an old growth forest there are more than trees. From the single celled organisms on up, there are thousand of species that make up a forest. One of the most important species are the mushrooms that break down the dead leaves and needles so the tree roots can absorb nutrients. Slash fires and exposure to sun in a clear cut will kill off any mushroom mycelium, making it harder for trees to access what nutrients remain.
I am well aware of forestry policies and practices. I have been fighting against the insanity for forty years. I have nothing against logging if it is done sustainably but I don't care how forestry spins it, clear cut logging and tree plantations are not sustainable. And I won't even get into the intentional spread of Pine Beetles during the seventies and eighties that have resulted in almost half of our forests being decimated by human greed and stupidity (as opposed to beetles).
Forests aren't dying. They don't just die for no reason. This sounds like hippy nonsense (no offense). We need to find harmony with nature, but not in a hippy tree-hugging sense, but rather, balancing our lumber needs with our preserving tree needs.
Like if you cut down a certain amount of trees, you should grow at least that many back, maybe even more. But it really isn't something to worry about.
We Canucks have little to no say in what goes on in the rest of the world. Our own country has many forests, it is great.
Like if you cut down a certain amount of trees, you should grow at least that many back, maybe even more. But it really isn't something to worry about.
We Canucks have little to no say in what goes on in the rest of the world. Our own country has many forests, it is great.
I suspect dodos and dinosaurs are still around, only now they are called conservatives.
have you traveled in the Caroboo country lately. Over 50% of the forest is brown beetle kill. Millions of acres have been devastated. In the fifteen years I lived in the Quesnel area, I watched the forests dwindle to less than 50% of what they were when I arrived. There used to be vast herds of mountain caribou in the Kootenays and now there are less than 100 or so individuals.
I was a commercial Pine Mushroom picker for twenty years and now there are hardly any left here because all the good patches have been logged. I won't see any mushrooms in those patches in my lifetime. I lived in the forest for 15 years up north. I watched animal, fish and bird populations nose dive because of human activities in the forests. Forests are more than trees. They are interconnected systems of life. We destroy millions of life forms every time we cut down a forest.
There are still numerous healthy forests in my province, Alberta, alone. Even more in BC or up north, in Yukon. Sad, but what can you do about brown beetles?
What do you suggest then? We live naked in the woods? Without wood we can't build houses, unless we use other materials like hemp, stone, or plasters.
Still, wood is essential for too many things to just give up. It doesn't have to be all-or-nothing thinking. We can save forests while still maintaining lumber industries, no?
Sure we can. But sending raw logs to the US and Japan doesn't help our unemployed forestry workers. We could selectively log like they do in Scandinavia and other places. Our forest are a mess because of mismanagement and greed. Mechanization has put almost two thirds of forest workers out of jobs. The stupidity just goes on and on.
I agree. But is it stupidity or mindless greed? Evil greed is much more dangerous then reckless stupidity, although both things are damaging. If they only care about profit, then they are evil and greedy, but if they are just not planning things properly and are ignoring obvious environmental effects, then I agree, they are stupid.
Some of our best lumber is frozen in Japanese lakes.
Maybe the problems of forest degradation could be solved by put into practice the rational, scientific and ecological principle of forest management?
Like FSC for example:
FSC:Startpage-Forest Stewardship Council
What about FSC (or something like that) principle of forest management in Canada? Is it use?
What is the problem of brown beetle? Is it an invasive species for Canada? It doesn’t have nature enemy – that is a reason of such horrid negative effect from this beetle for the forests?
FSC would be sensible, that is why forestry won't use it. The Pine Beetle is invasive from the south but warming climate over the past decade has allowed the beetle to reproduce uncontrollably. Long periods of freezing weather no longer kill off the lava in large numbers like in the past.
Why do you think so?
Actually, the principle of FSC makes the use of this system profitable for all wood industry (from lumbering to furniture and book shops). But at first the society must to begin this process.
A person come to the shop and buy wood products with FSC label and don’t buy any wood products without FSC label. The FSC label indicates that this wood produced with ecological standard.
So… if the most of the people do the same, the wood producers on the all levels will understand, that in this country the use of the FSC system is profitable. Thereby after some time the numbers of wood producers that use FSC system will grow.
About Pine Beetle - is very interesting. It is example of real negative effect from Global Climate Change. The cause of the problem is the disequilibrium of ecosystem.
I’ve heard about another Canada ecological problem related with the Climate Change – a great number of snow gooses in the North.
Nothing lasts for ever why should the forests have precedent over the pine beetles. Its their time to shine. Some people think there are too damn many trees cluttering up the horizon anyway. They make it so difficult to drive in the country and experiance nature.