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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 18, 2007)
TO THE EDITOR That leaves 30 percent (90,000 tons) of C emitted to the atmosphere by way of decom- position or burning without energy produc- tion. A typical Douglas fir stand with an age of 50 years can store approximately 125 tons of C per acre. Therefore, only 720 acres of the area harvested needed to be reforested in 2006 to store 90,000 tons of C in 2056. Now, I’m guessing that 594 MMBF was not har- vested from only 720 acres — that would equal 825,000 BF per acre! Starting to sound a lot like net positive C storage? The forest ecosystem alone cannot frame C emissions to the atmosphere. Forest C se- questration must consider all parts of the C chain, such as: trees, forest products, bio- mass, detritus and soil; the processes of growth, photosynthesis, respiration, mortal- ity, litter production; and disturbances. The atmosphere doesn’t care where the C is se- questered. Finally, we can all be happy that our trip across the country is only about half as bad (but still bad) as it originally suggested. Some 100,000 cars driving cross-country roundtrip equates to about 20 million gallons of fuel. Gasoline has about 5.5 pounds of C per gal- lon. That basic math works out to be 55,000 tons of C, or 200,000 tons of CO2. If reduc- ing our carbon footprint is a top priority, maybe it is time we as a society demand to be informed, and not misinformed? Michael Vanderberg Corvallis PRIVATE FATAL HARVEST I share your frustration, Rheychol Paris (9/13), regarding the continuing onslaught of our Coast Range forestlands, and I also desire “to take steps to protect what is left.” Much of that devastation you’ve seen, however, has actually been done on private lands, not pub- lic, and the laws regulating private land “har- vesting” of trees are paper thin in Oregon. Is there a politician out there willing to step up to the plate to introduce even the most tenu- ous of legislative reform? Doesn’t look that way, and environmental groups in Oregon are focused solely on public land oversight, espe- cially that tiny percentage of old growth that’s hanging on by a thread. The private land situation is the 900- trekking? pound gorilla in the room nobody knows what to do with. From my Highway 36 home in the foothills of the Coast Range, I witness a logging truck going by, literally, every 10 minutes, and those logs on board are from private lands, not public. If any readers of the EW have suggestions that can help assuage my sense of hopelessness on the situation, I would love to hear them. Bob Berman Cheshire GAME OF CONTROL Win in the Middle East? The Great Game isn’t about winning! From the days of the Roman Empire there has been a political awareness that running or owning a country was more expensive than instilling social chaos, then bribing local war- lords with arms in exchange for the resources you need. Because these puppet rulers are foreign-supported, they will be unpopular and dependent on the empire’s arms and sup- port to stay in power. Look at Israel under the Romans. Herod was a flunky. Look at every petty despot in South America and Asia we have supported. We don’t want peace or victory — we need a nation too weak to say “No” and make it stick. The end game is to “manage” Middle East oil so we get oil consistently enough and just a little cheaper so we can maintain a 1 or 2 percent cost of manufacturing advantage over the other nations of the world until the oil dries up. That 1 or 2 percent manufactur- ing advantage doubles by the time a product hits the street, and with U.S. distribution and advertising muscle, that little gap means we can muscle the global market. It amazes me this ancient and well-under- stood game is never explained in the press. Nothing about this is a mystery. The real problem is in public relations here in the U.S. where a messy affair big enough to make evening hour news means losing elections and the ability to wax rich from the gifts and deals the people in power can deal. Remember, refusing to let any other na- tion control Middle East oil was the heart of the so-called “Carter Doctrine”! Leo Rivers Cottage Grove medical advice for global travelers T HE T RAVEL C LINIC John D. Wilson, M.D. 1200 Hilyard St., Suite S-560 • 343-6028 Start traveling healthy today at www.TravelClinicOregon.com S TO P C U L TU R A L C AR N AG E ! ! ! Stop the Bulldozers!!! $40,000,000 to fill a couple holes??? Vote NO on 20-134 OR ELSE New Zone Gallery – GONE!!! Tango Center – GONE!!! John Henry’s – GONE!!! Horsehead – GONE!!! Jameson’s – GONE!!! Get out the vote!! No on 20-134 For more information visit: SensibleDowntownDevelopment.org OCTOBER 18 2007 9
