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“In
the Los Angeles area, there is an inversion
layer in the atmosphere that traps smog and
keeps the valleys east of the city in pretty
foul air much of the year.
It is possible to plant the hills around
Los Angeles with evergreen trees and water those
trees with recycled water from the sewer and/or
the storm drain systems.
The trees, once grown, would put a
phenomenal amount of oxygen and water into the
atmosphere.
They would literally create a whole new,
area ecosystem which would pull the foul air out
of the valleys and virtually eliminate the
smog.”
“That
sounds pretty far out.”
“Yeah,
in 1980, so did the CAT scan; yet, it or an
evolutionary counterpart to that piece of
equipment, is standard equipment today in every
major hospital in the entire world.”
“Of
course, all of us know that the idea of using
trees to eliminate smog in the Los Angeles area
is presently in the lunatic fringe, but what
most people still don’t know is that it is
also a very probable and a very feasible future
for the Los Angeles basin.”
“How
do you know that?”
“Preliminary,
theoretical studies have proven it feasible,
workable, and successful.”
“So
why isn’t it happening?”
“The
project is so big that numerous governments and
government agencies would need to cooperate.
Have you ever tried to get even just one
bureaucrat to move?”
“An
all but impossible task.”
“This
project certainly is possible; however, because
it’s such a big step from the status quo, a
major shift in awareness will be required before
it can happen.”
I
ask, “What
kind of shift in awareness?”
“It
will require a significant shift in attitude
regarding trees and an understanding of how
human life on this planet is intimately tied to
and dependent upon trees, upon forests and upon
countless other life forms that most people are
completely unaware of or simply take for
granted.
“Please
share with me your understanding of what a
forest is.”
“If
I do, you’ll probably accuse me of lecturing
or preaching and want to take my soap box
away.”
“Nobody’s
preached from a soap box since my great
grandfather’s time, so you needn’t be
concerned about losing your podium.”
“OK,
but promise to stop me if I get carried away.”
“Will
do.”
She
takes a deep breath and says,
“A forest is far more than just a bunch
of trees.
Technically speaking, a forest as an
ecosystem in which trees are the largest and
most obvious part of an intimately
interconnected, bio-social, mutual-life-support
system consisting of thousands of different life
forms and billions of individuals, all sharing a
common home.
Trees
are a major source of oxygen and a major consumer of carbon dioxide.
Trees stabilize out fragile topsoil. Trees also have a significant
impact on our climate. Over the course of its lifetime, a
tree transfers literally thousands of gallons of water from the soil
into the atmosphere. Trees are the homes of the vast
majority of life forms on this planet. In the tropics, a
single, full- sized tree can be the home of several hundred different
life forms and thousands of individuals.
And,
each forest is a mini-ecosystem in the grander scheme of life.
You and I and everyone else are part of a similar, but much
larger ecosystem called planet Earth”
I
laugh and say, “Professor, which university did you say you lectured
at?”
She
responds with, “BNU, that’s Brown Nose University.“
Remind me sometime and I’ll tell you a story about BNU.”
“I
shall do that.” I’m
secretly pleased because that invitation means she is open to our
meeting again. I
continue, “You speak of ecology as though you think most people
don’t usually regard themselves as a small piece of a very large
planet?”
“Most
people know this, but, at the same time, they don’t.”
“Can
you explain that, please?”
“As
an analogy, it’s like the difference between hearing and listening.
The sound registers but the meaning doesn’t.
For example, if I spoke to you in a foreign language, you would
hear my words but they would have little or no meaning.
To many people, ecology is something outside their natural
experience Sure, they may have visited a forest a time or two, and
they may even have a good intellectual grasp of what a forest is, but
that is far different from being born and raised in or close to a
forest.
So
for a vast number of people, particularly city dwellers and people who
live in desert climates such as Southern California, a forest is devoid
of intimate personal meaning for lack of a firsthand experience.
As a result, they do not know how to relate to trees.”
“They
don’t?”
Jazbell
asks, “Have
you been to Los Angeles lately?”
“No."
I say.
“They
cut most of the branches off what few trees they do have there.”
“That
doesn’t make any sense. Why
would they do that?”
“From
a broader perspective, no, it doesn’t make any sense; however, it
obviously makes sense to the decision makers.”
“And
who are the decision makers?”
“I
can’t speak directly about what any specific individuals do on their
private property nor about any specific political decision makers;
however, I can share with you the mentality out of which these decisions
come.”
“I’m
listening.”
“The
decisions are based on money and are made out of lawyer and accountant
mentality, not ecological vision.”
“How
so?” I ask.
“The
lawyer mentality says that a branch might some day fall off and damage
something or hurt someone, so if we cut most of the branches off the
trees, then we won’t get sued, and even if we do get sued, we can say
we took every precaution we could; therefore, it’s not our fault.”
“I
see. That really is a
money issue, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
I
ask, “And where does the accountant mentality come in?”
“The
accountant mentality says that if we cut most of the branches off the
trees, then we won’t have to trim them very often and so it will be
cheaper.”
“Money
again.”
“And
then there are the companies that are hired to butcher the trees.”
“For
money again.”
“Yes!
Money. Money.
Money. If you
want to know why anything is done, just follow the money trail. For example, those responsible for the mass destruction
of our forests believe that their own, personal, short-term-profits are
of greater value than the long term survival of their fellow passengers
on space ship Earth.
The
Great God Money controls every government bureaucracy and the personal
lives of most people. Most
people can hardly turn around without opening their wallets and asking
permission. But then,
that’s another story for another time.”
“Sometime,
I’d like to hear it.”
“And
so you shall.”
“Obviously,
the Los Angeles forest is a long term project.”
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