Are there prescribed burns in your park? I know that they do them frequently in Sequoia, and that there was a disastrous one in Bandelier, which probably really set back the movement for prescribed burns. Have you had any experiences with them?
On a more abstract note, I think the root of this, and most environmental problems comes from people separating entirely themselves from nature... we decide to manage nature like a factory, and then set aside a few little areas in parks so we can go look at nature in all its splendour, praise the lord... no surprise that people get upset when we want to go and manage those areas as well, not matter how well done it may be. The problem is with the way the entire landscape is managed - you won't get much sympathy for doing anything in the parks, as long as the rest of the landscape is being raped. And I can sympathise with that. I do know something about this... I've spent much of the last 8 years doing field work in pristine and old growth forests in Ontario (and some in BC) and we have a problem with fire supression here too. Still, in the last pockets of pristine forest I'm not keen to invite in timber industry to do something about it... I know that the fire cycle is incredibly variable even in this area of red and white pine forest, where they are quite frequent, so I figure we have some time still to figure it out. Whether that's true in your area, of course, I don't know. I wonder if we invest energy in prescribed burns if they can't work better... like everything, it can probably be done if there's a will to do it. I've done some selective cutting myself, in woodlots that have been managed for many years, but I see this as something completely different... even I have fallen into the "two categories" trap, or rather I've been forced into it, because it's the only model we've been offered. I believe, or hope, that will begin to change... but it has to change on both sides, that is industry must move as well. The other big problem is that moderates are rarely heard in forest debates... mostly you get corporations and hard core environmentalists sparring, but the whole framework of the discussion is wrong. I believe that in Quebec about eight (?) years ago unions, environmental groups, and some logging companies put together a joint statement asking for improved management, reductions in annual cuts, etc. - I don't know how they feel about it now, but those kind of collaborations are neccessary to make change. mike Hakan Falk wrote: >What they are doing is something that I can subscribe >to and if you seen what Motie said, he will too. But the >problem discussed from the start was that the environmentalists >hindered this in Motie's forest. In Motie's forest they did not >do clear cutting, they want to do selective harvesting and >cleaning, but was not able to do so. This because it is a >National park and they were refused to finance a responsible >forest management by the courts. By being hindered to do >so, they have an unbalanced forest with large risks of >fires. This in a National Park, that should be the best of >the best, otherwise it is no real meaning with National Park. > >I understand fully Motie's predicament and would go crazy >if I was in his situation. If he would have been in private forest >as the link describes, it would have been possible. It is not lack >of knowledge in what is best, it is lack of knowledge by those >who sabotage proper forest management in Motie's forest. > >Hakan > >At 10:33 PM 12/18/2002 +0900, you wrote: > >>http://www.yesmagazine.org/23livingeconomy/flaccavento.htm >> >>from the earth, up > >>by Anthony Flaccavento >>Before any course of action, we should first ask: >> >>Photo by Ann Hawthorne >>What is already here? >>What does nature allow us to do here? >>What does nature help us to do here? >> Wendell Berry >> >>On November 1, 1996, the day-shift crew arrived at the Louisiana >>Pacific Waferboard factory in Dungannon, Virginia. Greeted by a small >>group of security guards and a management representative, they were >>told to go home. The plant was closed. Permanently. No notice had >>been given. Ten years after opening its doors in this richly forested >>Scott County community, the plant laid off nearly 100 workers, also >>idling loggers who had been supplying the plant with logs. The >>profits from this plant, management said, were not high enough to >>keep it operating. >> >>The Appalachian regions of Tennessee and Virginia are not in crisis. >>Rather, the area is suffering from long-term economic stagnation and >>marginalization, and steady ecological deterioration. It is an all >>too common story of cultural and economic subordination, of >>individuals and communities gradually relinquishing the skills, >>knowledge, and bonds that made this part of the world different from >>countless others. >> >>But there is another Appalachian tale unfolding. It is the evolving >>story of community-based initiatives regenerating the region's >>economy and culture from within. >> >>At Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD), we focus our efforts on >>a 10-county area of southwest Virginia and northeast Tennessee. This >>part of Appalachia has sustained jobless rates two to three times >>higher than US rates, approaching 20 percent in some counties; >>poverty rates exceed 30 percent in some counties. >> >>Our plan was clear yet ambitious: to help the community build a more >>sustainable economy from networks of small, local endeavors. ASD set >>itself the task of transforming two central legs of Appalachia's >>economy: agriculture and timber. >> >>In the seven years since ASD was formed, the most important lesson we >>learned was this: Building an alternative regional economy-one that >>is more just, more ecologically sound and more self reliant-requires >>networks of relationships that are synergistic, and a means of >>capturing and accumulating knowledge and assets. We have come to call >>this an infrastructure for community sustainability. >> >>The foundation of this infrastructure is the ecosystem. Therefore, >>the strategy focuses on restoring ecological health, creating >>livelihoods and economic systems that are ecologically sustainable, >>and building the financial and physical capital needed to add value >>to the region's natural resources and bridge the gap between >>producers and the marketplace. >> >><snip> >> >> From forests to floors >>ASD's sustainable forestry and wood products program follows a path >>similar to our agriculture efforts. ASD forester Emily Duncan works >>with interested landowners to assess the health of their forests and >>inventory the timber. Together, they create a plan to protect streams >>and waterways, conserve wildlife habitat, and regenerate >>biodiversity. If appropriate, Emily then marks some timber for >>harvesting. The cut includes a high proportion of lower-quality trees >>in order to help regenerate both species diversity and better quality >>timber for future generations. Trees harvested under our standards >>are purchased by ASD, sawed into boards, dried in our dry kiln, and >>then manufactured into flooring, cabinets, and other products by >>local companies. >> >>This restorative forestry requires at least three things: patient >>landowners willing to forego some money in the short term in favor of >>long-term wealth, both economic and ecological; skilled loggers, >>whether mechanical or animal-powered in their operations; and markets >>that pay closer to the true cost for wood products. >> >>The beauty of the process is its affordability. Because of the >>proximity of trees to their market, and because of the value >>adding-steps in the process, it is possible to pay a substantial >>premium to loggers and landowners, while charging only slightly more >>to the end user. Sawing the logs, drying the boards, and >>manufacturing cabinets or flooring makes every foot of log far more >>valuable. >> >>The Louisiana Pacific waferboard factory that laid off nearly 100 >>people in 1996 relied on extensive clear- cutting for its cheap >>supply of timber, and it established no roots in the community. ASD >>and its many partners are working towards a different type of >>economic development-one that is inextricably local, that builds upon >>and adds value to the ecological wealth of our communities. Like a >>good farmer, the more we pursue this path, the more we see what is >>already here and what nature enables us to do now and into the future. >> >>To contact Anthony Flaccavento and ASD, call 276/623-1121 or visit >>www.appsusdev.org. >> >> >>Biofuel at Journey to Forever: >>http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html >> >>Biofuels list archives: >>http://archive.nnytech.net/ >> >>Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. >>To unsubscribe, send an email to: >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ >> > > > >Biofuel at Journey to Forever: >http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > >Biofuels list archives: >http://archive.nnytech.net/ > >Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. >To unsubscribe, send an email to: >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://archive.nnytech.net/ Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
