The State of Global Forests Part Six, Issue 20 The State of Global Forests

Objectives After reading the assigned chapter and reviewing the materials presented the students will be able to understand: Can forests help mitigate climate change? What practices can help restore and protect forests?

Introduction A study by the World Resource Institute concludes half of the forest or 3 billion hectares have been lost due to human activity and we continue to lose about 16 billion hectares each year. Deforestation released over 120 billion metric tons of carbon into the atmosphere. Large predators require large tracts of contiguous habitat and cannot survive in fragmented forests.

Why Protect Forests? Even fragmented forests help maintain biodiversity. Forests store immense amounts of carbon and help moderate global climate change. Forests provide billions of dollars of economic services such as wood products, herbs, medicines, and other raw materials. Forests protect water supplies, clean air of pollutants, and provide recreational facilities.

Three Classes of Global Forests Based roughly on latitude, but defined by seasonality: 1. Boreal forests – at polar latitudes and high elevations. 2. Temperate forests – at mid latitudes. 3. Tropical Forests – at frost free equatorial latitudes.

Tropical Forests Daylight is roughly constant year round, there is no winter, and precipitation is heavy in tropical forests. Soils are generally poor, and easily depleted of nutrients. If the current rate of deforestation continues, the world’s rainforests will vanish in 100 years (NASA). Deforestation is occurring because of: logging, cattle raising, and food and fuel crops.

Temperate Forests Temperate forests, at mid latitudes of both the northern and southern hemispheres, have well defined seasons with several frost free months. Some redwoods in California forests are over 300 feet tall. Guide to logging activity: The cut rate must be low enough to sustain the forest. All native plant and animal species must be preserved. Water bodies (rivers, streams, wetlands, and lakes) are vital and must be protected without degradation. Ecological restoration must be incorporated into decision making at all levels.

Boreal Forests Boreal forests comprise over 1 billion acres of Siberia, Scandinavia, and northern Canada. They have short growing seasons and severe winter conditions. They are dominated by hardy coniferous varieties like spruce and fir. Russia holds nearly half of the Northern hemisphere’s terrestrial carbon. Canada’s harvesting rates are not sustainable.

Global Forests and Junk Mail Junk mail consists mainly of unsolicited advertising circulars and unsolicited mailing. The Direct Marketing Association reports that half of the junk mail is discarded unread. Seventeen trees are needed to make a ton of paper. Nearly 100 million trees are cut and used for “junk mail” each year in the United States.

Global Forests and Disposable Paper Cups Starbucks in 2004 purchased 27,400 tons of cup stock. McDonald’s used more than 451,000 tons of packaging in 2003 of which about 41% was paperboard, the raw material for paper cups.

Summary A study by the World Resource Institute concludes half of the forest or 3 billion hectares have been lost due to human activity and we continue to lose about 16 billion hectares each year. Even fragmented forests help maintain biodiversity. Forests store immense amounts of carbon and help moderate global climate change. Forests provide billions of dollars of economic services such as wood products, herbs, medicines, and other raw materials. Forests protect water supplies, clean air of pollutants, and provide recreational facilities. Deforestation is occurring because of: logging, cattle raising, and food and fuel crops. Guide to logging activity: The cut rate must be low enough to sustain the forest. All native plant and animal species must be preserved. Water bodies (rivers, streams, wetlands, and lakes) are vital and must be protected without degradation. Ecological restoration must be incorporated into decision making at all levels. Nearly 100 million trees are cut and used for “junk mail” each year in the United States.

Home Work 1. Why should we protect our forests? 2. What is a good guide to logging activity? 3. How many trees are cut for “junk mail” each year?