Removal of Forests
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In the 1800’s, non-native American settlers began cutting down trees in the Pacific Northwest in order to make room for progress and civilization. Towards the 1900’s, people became aware of the commercial benefits of timber. In the 70’s and 80’s, people began to notice that certain species, such as the spotted owl, are linked to the old growth forests. Decades of cutting and planting lead people to believe that the development of these forests was caused by specific conditions that could not be duplicated. This lead to over a dozen lawsuits, three of which involved total gridlock, by 1992 (Northwest Forest Plan Historic Overview www.reo.gov).
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Clearcutting threatens many species such as the afore mentioned spotted owl, the marbled murrelett, anadromous fish, and many others. As well, many environmental issues such as soil and water degradation, unsightly landscapes, and other damages can occur. Since forests bring such controversy into the otherwise fun-loving Pacific Northwest, I suggest the complete removal of all trees and forests from this area. Without forests, the clearcutting problem would be solved, as there would be nothing to clearcut. As well, extinction of certain species, and environmental problems associated with clear cutting would cease to be a threat which looms around the corner. People would be able to relax, rather than living in anxiety over what the future holds.
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Forest removal can have health benefits and contribute to the well-being of society. According to ehealthmd.com, worrying is a problem which plagues every person on the planet at some point. Bouts of worry, brought on by anxiety over the future, referred to as “what if” thoughts, can be uncontrollable and devastating, leading to depression. Depression can lead to fatigue, body aches, and susceptibility to disease. These factors not only put ones health at risk, as per Mark Tyrrell of depression.com, but endanger ones employment and relationship life as well.
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Naturally, it would be wise to remove as many anxieties as possible form ones life, such as the threats brought on by Clearcutting. Being a problem which plagues the entire northwest region, forest removal would make the Pacific area a much healthier and happier place to live.
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Also, since many animals are suffering due to the destruction of their habitats, the humane thing to do would be to put them out of their misery. Removal of the forests would be an efficient way to do this, as it would leave these animals vulnerable to predators and other dangers, effectively ending their lives, and their pain. This in turn, would provide food for these predators, leaving animals such as deer for human hunters. On top of this, with their extinction, endangered animals like the spotted owl would no longer be endangered.
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Valuable tax dollars are spent on organizations like, the Bureau of Land management, the National Park Service, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Northwest Forest Plan. Without these organization, our taxes can go toward other things like education and law enforcement.
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For decades, the timber industry has been frowned upon by many northwesterners with environmental views. This has brought on many disputes which interfere with the lives of your average Joe Oregon and Jane Washington. Many people, after a hard day of work, would love to flip on the news and see coverage of accidents, wars, and floods. But often times, much of the news air time is taken up by depressing things such as reports of environmental disputes. Removal of the forests would result in the relocation of the timber industry, to other parts of the nation where the population doesn’t hold as low an opinion of the timber industry as many in the northwest do.
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Environmental activists can be a nuisance, as well. Activists involve themselves in demonstrations which can impede daily progress. These demonstrations include activities such as, blocking roads, disturbing the peace, harassing pedestrians, and littering. With the displacement of the timber industry, many of these activists will follow suit in order to protest in other locations.
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Old growth forest stands in the way of urban development and human progress. In 1994, Portland’s apartment vacancy rates dropped below three percent (Woodard 22101). Efforts were made to increase the amount of apartments on the market, but the latter half of the nineties saw a growth of 25 percent. This number was greater than the growth rates of both Seattle and San Francisco at the time. Then, in 2005, the vacancy dropped below five percent. In this time, the number of households earning less than $26,000 annually have increased from 1990 to 1997, while the number of affordable housing units have actually decreased.
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According to wilderness.org, in the Central Cascade Mountains in Washington, alone, around 500,000 acres of land has changed from covered to non-covered during a 14 year period as a result of logging and urban development. Construction and logging has increased the amount of forest edge habitat, exposing them to negative impacts from the forest edge zone. As well, construction and logging has decreased the average forest patch as well as the size of the average forested core area. High wilderness value areas are almost non-existent outside of national parks and congressionally designated wilderness.
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Because of these things, it’s obvious that the northwest is in a time of undergoing great change. During these times, it is important to let go of things which have outlived their usefulness, such as old growth forests and the species which depend on them. This trend of deforestation is a direct result of the population boom that is taking place within the Pacific Northwest. This expanse in population calls for the immediate decrease in forest area in order to make room for all of the newcomers. It’s time to embrace the future of the northwest as a booming urban region. After all, the population of Portland was only 529,121 as of 2000. We have a lot of catching up to do in order to reach the level of areas like Los Angeles or San Antonio.
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Another benefit to removing the trees is to clear up that pesky sasquatch mystery. Since 1811, there have been hundreds of sightings of sasquatch, or, Bigfoot, the legendary creature resembling the Yeti of Himalayan myth (Lindemans pantheon.org). Many stories, fuzzy pictures, and out of focus videos have turned up over the years, as well, many giant footprints have been found. We still have yet to find any concrete evidence of the creatures existence, however. With the removal of forests, the supposed habitat of the sasquatch, it is likely that corpses of sasquatch will be found, finally proving that this being did in fact once exist before the destruction of its habitat. This also serves to eliminate a possible threat. According to witness accounts, this creature stands about 6’9” with footprints measuring between 16 and 20 inches. This beast, being larger than the average human, would prove difficult to subdue, and poses a possible threat, if it exists, to residents and visitors of the Pacific Northwest region.
Therefore, I propose the removal of all forests from the Pacific Northwest. These forests are the subject of much conflict and controversy, adding much unneeded drama to peoples lives. These forests also pose as a nuisance to the developing region and contain several threats. This is why I suggest action be taken to rid ourselves of these forests as soon as possible.
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Works Cited
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Northwest Forest Plan. “Northwest Forest Plan Historic Overview.” general/history http://www.reo.gov
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EHealth MD. “What is Worry?” library October 2004 http://www.ehealthmd.com
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Tyrrell, Mark. “The Physical Effects of Depression.” 2001-2006 http://www.clinical-depression.co.uk
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The Wilderness Society. “Cascade Crest Forests: Forest Loss, Habitat Fragmentation, and Wildness.” library < http://www.wilderness.org/>
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US Census 2000. “Portland City, Oregon Statistics and Demographics.” 2000 <http://portlandor.areaconnect.com/>
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Lindemans, Micha F. “Sasquatch.” articles 3 March 1997 - 10 March 2002 <http://www.pantheon.org/>
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