But I do have one question, where are the hardwoods gonna come from once the forests are gone?
I think that logging for lumber has been given a bad rap as the cause of "deforestation" in our country. Land harvested for lumber isn't the problem, it's the land cleared for farming and urban expansion. Following is a interesting article discussing the deforestation issue in the US. Due to better agricultural practices and cultural awareness we actually have more forest cover than in the past. And if managed properly a forest is a very renewable resource.
Forests in the United States
The United States is 2.263 billion acres, of which 745 million acres, or 33 percent, is forested. 495 million acres, or 67 percent, of the total area of U.S. forests are commercial forests, used to produce timber for forest products.
Thirty-three percent of the total land area in the United States is forested. This compares to 46 percent forested at the time of European settlement. Between 1600 and 1920, 13 percent of the land area (29 percent of the forested area) was lost to clearing for agriculture and towns. Most of this clearing occurred between 1850 and 1910. By far the largest part was cleared for farming. Cities actually occupy a very small percentage of the total land area.
Today, the United States has about the same area of forestland as it did in 1920, even though there has been a 143 percent increase in population between then and today. There are two main reasons why the area of land in crops has remained stable since 1920. First, in 1910 about one-quarter of the land in crops was used to produce food for horses and other draft animals. The advent of the automobile and tractor made it possible to use that land to produce food for people instead. Second, advances in technology, chemistry, and genetics have made it possible to produce much more food on the same amount of land. In North America, forest areas remained the same in Canada and increased slightly in the United States.
Deforestation and Its Cause
Deforestation means the long-term loss of forest cover. Deforestation is the opposite of reforestation. Reforestation means that the forest is renewed after it is harvested. This renewal can either be by natural regeneration, by planting new trees, or by a combination of both.
It is important to know that forests are capable of recovering from total destruction without any help from people. Over the millions of years that forests have existed, they have grown back from destruction by fire, volcanoes, floods, landslides, and ice ages. In fact, it is so natural for forests to be destroyed occasionally that ecologists call it "disturbance" rather than "destruction." Forests have evolved so that they are capable of renewing themselves as part of their normal cycle of growth.
The disturbance caused by harvesting or logging a forest is not nearly as severe as that caused by a hot wildfire or a volcanic eruption. Forests can usually recover quickly from logging whereas more severe disturbance can result in slower recovery. But even the most severely disturbed forest will renew itself if it is left to do so.
Deforestation occurs when the forest is prevented from growing back by the actions of people and their domestic animals. This process is also known as "conversion" because it usually involves the conversion of the land from a forest to another use such as agriculture, towns and cities, or industry. Once the land has been converted, it must be maintained by people or it will grow back into a forest. For example, if agricultural land is abandoned and left alone, trees will eventually come back and the forest will renew itself. Even where the land has been completely paved over, such as a parking lot, it will gradually recover to a forest if the parking lot is abandoned.
Domestic grazing animals are one of the main causes of deforestation in many parts of the world. If too many sheep, goats, or cattle are put on the land, they can prevent trees from growing back. This has occurred in areas such as Scotland, northern Africa, and many parts of Asia.
So, simply cutting down the trees does not cause deforestation. What really matters is what happens after the trees are cut down. Is the land reforested and grown back into a forest, or is it deforested and converted to another use to grow food, house people, or build a factory or shopping mall?
We have to cut some of the forest down and convert the land to farms and cities to feed and house the six billion people who live on Earth. But wouldn't it be a good idea to try and reduce the amount of forest land that was deforested for these purposes.
I have a small 3 acre area behind my house that used to be an agricultural field in cultivation. About 15 years ago it was left to fallow. The regrowth of the forest is amazing. I cleared a small area for a fire-pit and seating around it, and I am constantly battling the forest from returning to that area. If that area and the surrounding undisturbed area (for the last 15 year) was left untouched I will have a climatic hardwood forest. Nature left unobstructed will take care of it's own.
It's hard to be a tree-hugger, and a lumber fan :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Dave
