TREE HUGGING DIRT WORSHIPPER

“Thanks for the compliment.

Timber harvesting and other forms of vegetation manipulation can be used to improve and enhance all components of forested ecosystems. Lock-it-up-don't-touch will lead to whatever natural processes come along. These can be catastrophic and more damaging than any human intervention.

Wood is the most environmentally friendly construction material yet found. Wood is infinitely renewable, completely recyclable, and uses less energy and produces less toxic residue to convert into a consumer product than any other material. In addition, there is currently a wood surplus in the U.S., not a shortage. Forest cover is increasing. There is more forested land now in the U.S. than 1970 and about the same as 1900. Forest density is about 1/3 higher now than historically. That is the national average. Some areas are 4, 5 times or more dense than historically. The National Forests are growing about 7 times as much wood annually as currently harvested. That is ecologically unsound and unsustainable.

BTW -- the amount of late seral in the dry interior forests of the West is increasing, not decreasing. In many areas there is more now than ever existed historically.”

“That's nice!

I like to make things out of wood.

Forested land does not equate with old growth or virgin forest.

Behind the house I built in Vermont in '88 I cleared the 100+/- year old maples and birch.
The trees grew back like MAD......stump sprouts that are mostly red maple.
This 1/4 acre is now "forested" quite densely with 20 foot trees.
One might even say that the new "forest" is far more dense than the old.
These trees are far from being timber though......about 100 years away.

Much of what is technically forested in the U.S. is far from being a mature forest and may take hundreds of years to regain the stature and "value" of old growth.”

“Never said all forests were old growth.

The definition of 'forest' is at least 10% canopy cover. The urban areas of the U.S. average 27% canopy cover. Atlanta is around 35%, downtown Chicago is 11%. So if you somehow remove all the concrete and asphalt from inside the loop in Chicago and leave the vegetation it would technically meet the definition of forested, but urban areas are excluded from the forested classification in the U.S.

There is no commonly accepted single definition of 'old growth'. There are 145 different forest types in the U.S. and no one definition could possibly fit them all. But old growth can be put into two broad categories. The first one that most people think of is a multi-story all-age closed canopy forest. The second is an open forest comprised of a few large trees and very little understory, sometimes described as park-like.

There never were large expanses of either type. Most forests in the pre-European contact were a mosaic of various sizes and ages, some even-age and some all-aged, some single specie and some mixed. There never was millions of contiguous acres of old growth -- only patches of various sizes imbedded in the midst of other patches of different forest structures. In the dry interior forests of the West, the first type was largely absent. The second type never comprised a plurality. Estimates vary from 15% to 30% in small patches. The rest was a mosaic of younger forests and natural openings. Many environmentalists decry 'forest fragmentation'. Historically forests were always fragmented. Homogeneity is a twentieth century phenomenon. Fire exclusion and other factors this century created the larger expanses of the first type in the West. The multi-story type of old growth existed only where fires were uncommon. When fires did occur the stand was completely killed and a new foest regenerated.
The second type, park-like, existed where fire was frequent. Even then, occasionally a high intensity fire come through and destroy the stand. The younger forests with low densities and many openings contain far more biodiversity than old growth. The beleif always has been although younger low-density forests contain more species, old growth had the specialists, species that need old growth to survive. Recent research is challenging that belief. The list of old-growth-dependent-only species is shortening each year as research sheds light on habitat needs.

Old growth is a vital component of healthy forests. But is only one component among many, and many now believe less important than previously thought. A healthy forest contains many different structures and compositions. The native diversity of forests can best be maintained through human manipulation. If that manipulation produces a consumer product in the process that is even better -- a win-win proposition.”

“Yada, yada, yada, thanks for the information.
Most of that I know.

Are you making an arguement for takin' it all since there is so much?

Is conservation a personal virtue?

Win-win sounds like "shut up and let the forest products industry have their way".”

“I have one of those and I ordered it from a company called "Northern Sun". Try www.northernsun.com and if that's not it, look them up on www.askjeeves.com. The web site does not have all the bumperstickers on it's site, so if you don't find it, give them a call and order one over the phone, or better yet, request a catalogue and order more stuff....I'm POSITIVE they have it and lots of other progressive stickers, shirts, posters, etc.....”

“Thanks Melinda. You didn't have a "Sorry I missed church..." bumpersticker on the other side by any chance?”

“Markar....

I'm in Oregon and no, I didn't have the "sorry I missed church I was too busy studying witchcraft and becoming a lesbian"....that one could probably be found at the same web site. The next one I want to get is "I saw Elvis making Crop circles" and "UFO's are real, the airforce doesn't exist". Good luck!:)”

“stick to one topic ppl. . . .”

“Anyone know where I can tune in to "The Old Time Witchcraft Hour"?”

“LOL, Tom.



Dear Hikenkid,

No.”