It is easy to rail against "illegal" logging [search], when in fact typical "legal" commercial logging is far more extensive and destructive in total to the world's biodiversity [search], climate [search], water [search] and biosphere [search]. Both liquidate life giving natural habitats, and more people are realizing they are mostly ecologically indistinguishable [ark]. Ancient primary forests industrially harvested for the first time are in fact destroyed -- in terms of being a fully intact ecological system with a unique, unimpaired evolutionary trajectory -- regardless if society considers it legal or illegal. Natural and planted secondary forest ecosystems managed industrially as tree farms become further ecologically diminished with each successive harvest including continued toxification, soil diminishment, species and genetic loss, reduced carbon and water holding potential, and so many other symptoms of ongoing biological homogenization.

Humanity's relationship with all forests must be transformed if we are to stop the hemorrhaging of lost species and halt transformation of the atmosphere. Industrial forestry [search] is incompatible with sustaining the full range of natural forest values [search] -- from species to genes, from soil microbes to local microclimates, from a forest stand to the Earth system and everything in between. Solving the biodiversity [search], climate [search] and water [search] crises requires a new forest protection paradigm that optimizes ecosystem, biodiversity and climate values while ecologically sustainably harvesting the annual growth increment (minus ecological restoration of natural capital to account in the future for past damage).

To maintain an operable biosphere while achieving equitable and just global ecological sustainability, the forest protection movement must unite behind a rigorous set of goals known to be actually sufficient to stop forest and climate decline. This includes ending ancient forest logging and all industrial destruction of relatively intact natural ecosystems, gaining permanent protections for all remaining primary and old-growth forests (with appropriate compensation and continued small scale use for local peoples), promoting the ecological restoration and certified management of regenerating and planted natural forest ecosystems, and assisting local peoples with small-scaled, community-based eco-forestry projects based upon regenerating secondary and standing ancient forests.

Ecological Internet's network and partners are committed to this sufficient, ecology and people based forest protection agenda. This ecologically sufficient forest vision is the only way forward for forests including rainforests, species including humans, and ecosystems including Gaia. To work for anything less is to acquiesce to the powers of ecological simplification, accepting ecological diminishment and collapse as inevitable, while pursuing tokenistic responses that by legitimizing current trends impede global forest sustainability. You know who I am talking about, and if it is you, I urge you to reexamine your motivations and strategies. Otherwise, your apologist reform efforts causing continued forest destruction remains a legitimate target for protest.

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Patagonia's wild rivers to be dammed, destroying ancient temperate forests, for 50 years of electricity; please let supposedly environmentally responsible Home Depot know they should not be doing business with the project's primary Chilean advocate

TAKE ACTION! One of Chile's last true pristine and intact wildernesses is to be dammed and logged to provide hydroelectricity. The dams -- two on the Baker River and three on the Pascua River -- would irretrievably damage Patagonia [search], one of the Earth's wildest and most beautiful places. The HidroAysén project will flood river valleys containing several thousand hectares of ancient primary forests. The project's transmission line would require extensive clearcutting of further pristine Chilean native forests [search], clearing more than a 1,500-mile swath that will impact fourteen national parks and wilderness reserves.

Shockingly, the main Chilean project proponent -- the Matte Group -- does extensive business with U.S. mega-corp Home Depot [search], broadly perceived as being "green". In consultation with International Rivers, Ecological Internet is working to get Matte to withdraw from the project by highlighting their business interests with Home Depot. Please challenge Home Depot to live up to their green image and refuse to participate in the greenwashing of Patagonian wild river and ancient forest destruction. Insist Home Depot cease doing business with Matte until they withdraw from HidroAysén. TAKE ACTION!

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Greenpeace warns in a new report entitled "Turning Up the Heat" that industrial logging in Canada's boreal forests [ark] threatens to turn the country's vast northern forest into a source of global warming. Greenpeace-Canada diagnoses the problem -- Boreal ancient forest logging causes climate change -- while being myopic and inconsistent on the solution, insinuating that industrial logging of ancient forests can be done acceptably. Yet we know first-time selective logging of primary forests releases immediately at least 40% of their carbon, while forever dimininishing future carbon holding potential, leaving behind much diminished tree plantations.

Greenpeace wants to have it both ways -- highlighting the climate hazard of logging primary forests while actively supporting logging of primary forests by the Forest Stewardship Council [search | press release]. In Canada and elsewhere Greenpeace and pals are pimping an out of touch, ecologically bereft message that logging ancient forests is desirable. Because of conflict of interests and an inability to admit they are wrong, they entirely miss the point that ending ancient forest logging is a necessary keystone step to address climate change as well as biodiversity and ecosystem loss. By failing to take a firm stand, they legitimize the forest industries' outrageous claims that their first time logging of ancient primary and old-growth forests benefits the climate.

I fully expect the Canadian Boreal to be the next place where mainstream ancient forest apologists (also including RAN and ForestEthics) sell out the forests for promises of "certified" or even lesser "ecosystem based" logging as occurred in B.C. Canada [search]. Shame on you Greenpeace!

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Done properly tree planting [search] is a hope filled expression of love for nature. But making a hole in the ground and dropping in the seedling is only the beginning. Nearly all planted trees require years of care including watering, weeding and even fencing to become established. Ill-conceived mass tree planting efforts are failing in Nigeria and worldwide [ark] because of failure to plan for this aftercare and other issues like using the wrong species in the wrong place. This is but one misunderstanding regarding tree planting and the environment.

Trees help remove carbon and help restore terrestrial ecosystems, but planted trees are generally not forests. Plantations of only one, often exotic, tree species are crops and not forests. Forests include diverse native tree species with associated understory plants, wildlife and soil microcobes. A natural forest provides ecological processes that are generally absent in tree farms including cycling of water and carbon, while creating soil and habitats.

And sadly, almost certainly tree planting does little to absorb carbon dioxide and thus address climate change. There are too many uncertainties regarding the permanence of carbon sequestration given changing climate. Should trees planted for climate mitigation suffer a massive die-back, tons of carbon would be released at once in a massive positive feedback.

So what to do? I suggest planting native tree species [search] found in your area, in mixtures resembling dominant trees found in local plant communities. Perhaps mix in some species from nearby warmer climates, aiding in their migration in response to global heating. Ideally the tree stock should be sourced from local populations to maximize locally adapted genes. Once a canopy starts forming native understory plants should arrive via wildlife and you can supplement this with herb and shrub plantings as well.

By planting trees that seek to restore native ecosystems [search] you are maximizing an individual tree's contribution to local biodiversity and ecosystems. With these suggestions and with proper initial care, what you plant is more likely to survive and hold its carbon. What a marvelous give to the Earth and your children's children.

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