The role of forests in climate

Thank you Tony. You speak the truth, based in science. I hope we can turn this profit driven and misguided ship turned around. Perhaps you can write a second article telling us what we can do to stop the logging?

Thanks for your letter, Tony, but when I finished reading, I was expecting an “April Fools!” conclusion. Why, you ask? Well, if we evaluate what you assert, then general fire and forest management theory is completely in the wrong, as is Newsom (since he’s spending a fortune, at least he says he will, on fire and forest management, which includes thinning forests) and as is a December, 2023 article on a 20-year study from UC Berkeley researchers which confirm California forests are healthier when burned or thinned (https://news.berkeley.edu/2023/12/12/twenty-year-study-confirms-california-forests-are-healthier-when-burned-or-thinned/). The cited article provides links for additional information, including a link to the published paper. Happy reading!

Wasn’t it California Rep. Tom McClintock who said, “Excess timber comes out of the forest one way or the other: it is either carried out or it burns out.” It sounds like you’d rather excess timber burn out instead of providing an alternative energy source or raw materials for wood products. Wouldn’t it be better if we can make use of trees instead of allowing wildfires to burn these trees? BTW, I believe Trump is opening up national forests for logging. It’s about time we reduced fuel for wildfires. Instead, we can use the wood as fuel.

As for CO2, how much CO2 was emitted from forest fires? Without forest management, more trees will burn resulting in more CO2 emissions. Not only that, how much emissions are generated from firefighting efforts from the ground and from the air? Do folks really care about a “changing” climate, enough to act? Obviously not the folks taking 400+ private jets to attend, of all things, a climate conference to lecture us about carbon emissions. Seems to me priorities for forest management are finally aligning, to the betterment of society and nature.

Thank you for your well thought out article. Eventually all wood in a forest decomposes and emits the same amount of CO2 over time whether it dies naturally, burns or is used as lumber. Forest need to be managed to prevent fires and selective cutting by lumber companies saves some of the tremendous cost of government paying for forest clearing while providing valuable lumber.