The Top 13 Environmental Stories of the Aughts

Here is my olio list of profound and profane environmental news of the past decade–the aughts. Hurricane Katrina From the toxic sludge left behind on the land to removal of the vegetative buffers by encroaching civilization, hurricane Katrina exposed so many of our environmental shortcomings, all in one storm. Al Gore’s Inconvenient Nobel Peace PrizeIContinue reading “The Top 13 Environmental Stories of the Aughts”

A Green Recovery

This was written by Bill Keye, Government Affairs Specialist for the California Licensed Foresters Association. On a scale not seen since the Great Depression, unemployment and underemployment continue to grind away at California and the United States.  27 years ago, in November, 1982, the unemployment rate in the Golden State hit 11.0%.  It hung aroundContinue reading “A Green Recovery”

The Green Loss Effect

Policymakers must address the influence of global deforestation and urbanization on climate change, in addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, according to Georgia Tech’s City and Regional Planning Professor Brian Stone in an upcoming paper to be published in the December edition of Environmental Science and Technology. “The role of land use in global warmingContinue reading “The Green Loss Effect”

A Tempest in a Toilet Bowl – Environmentalists Say ‘Plush Toilet Paper Wipes Out Forests’

Environmentalists Say Plush Toilet Paper Wipes Out Forests Does buying soft toilet paper really threaten the environment? The blogosphere overflows with hyperbole saying it does. “Americans Wipe Their Butts with Non-Renewable Trees,”1 one site trumpeted. Another gushed, “Use recycled toilet paper and paper towels and reduce the demand of destroying virgin forests!”2 I’m sure sheContinue reading “A Tempest in a Toilet Bowl – Environmentalists Say ‘Plush Toilet Paper Wipes Out Forests’”

A Tempest in a Toilet Bowl – Environmentalists Say 'Plush Toilet Paper Wipes Out Forests'

Environmentalists Say Plush Toilet Paper Wipes Out Forests Does buying soft toilet paper really threaten the environment? The blogosphere overflows with hyperbole saying it does. “Americans Wipe Their Butts with Non-Renewable Trees,”1 one site trumpeted. Another gushed, “Use recycled toilet paper and paper towels and reduce the demand of destroying virgin forests!”2 I’m sure sheContinue reading “A Tempest in a Toilet Bowl – Environmentalists Say 'Plush Toilet Paper Wipes Out Forests'”

WWF Sweden says stopping deforestation helps to slow climate change

Note that I fundamentally agree with the World Wildlife Fund of Sweden: “Sweden should follow the examples set by its northern neighbors in developing systems to halt deforestation…Stemming deforestation is one of the most efficient tools we have to slow down climate change.” – WWF CEO General Lasse Gustavsson It’s worth noting that deforestation doesContinue reading “WWF Sweden says stopping deforestation helps to slow climate change”

Six Reasons Why Fancy TP is No Big Deal

Well, an article in the October 2, 2009 issue of The Week caught my attention. It’s titled “Soft toilet paper: Environmental threat?” If you’re not familiar with The Week, it draws from multiple sources to give an idea of the news and opinions currently filling newspapers, magazines, and our airwaves. One of the sources quotedContinue reading “Six Reasons Why Fancy TP is No Big Deal”

Perhaps that Sahara Plantation Could Power Itself

University of Washington researchers have produced electricity from a tree. Perhaps once they plant the Sahara with those eucalypts to alleviate global warming, the trees could deliver the power to provide their water. Or maybe not. According to their online article,”The custom circuit is able to store up enough voltage from trees to run a low-power sensor.”

Get your facts first

and then you can distort them as much as you please.– Mark Twain Are U.S. forestlands “currently being lost at a rate of 150-million acres annually”? An RSS feed from the Pacific Forest Trust titled, “New Climate Research Supports Forest Protection, Reveals CO2 Storage Potential of Temperate Forests” caught my eye a few weeks back.Continue reading “Get your facts first”

Timber's Term of the Week: Choker

Choker n A 3/4 to 1-1/2 inch diameter steel wire rope used pull a log to landing. A choker is normally 15 to 35 feet long with a knob at both ends and sliding hook for either knob. Synonyms: Steel necktie The greenhorn in this video (at just over a minute in) is setting chokers:Continue reading “Timber's Term of the Week: Choker”