11.35 ft around - her arms don't quite make it
Back in the spring I spent time looking for old growth forest and a 600 year old tree. At the time I wasn’t sure if I had found the tree but it turns out I did. I know this because I spent a few hours with a small group interested in preserving some of the remaining stands.
My interest was/is rather peripheral to that of the others. I went along to see what potential exists for hiking in these spots.
Trekking through a mature stand
From a strictly hiking point of view I think an old growth stand would need interpretation panels explaining the significance and value of the trees and the ecosystems they are part of. Trails would need to be marked clearly enough to ensure people unfamiliar with backcountry woodland would not become lost.
Mature old growth
There is a certain degree of urgency involved in the broader issue of having the province designate and protect forests like those I observed today. Once trees that are several hundred years old are gone, they’re gone, they will not regenerate. Enough acreage needs to be protected to permit continued growth and regeneration. It seems unthinkable that such valuable wood is slated for harvest as biomass.
Sample of old growth forest
35 years ago moose over-populated these woods. Now it is rare to even see a moose track, let alone a moose, anywhere, ever. Roads lead inevitably to habitat loss.
Road through old growth
I’m not familiar enough with the ‘issues’ to write much at the moment but I definitely think environmental protection is a valid and essential matter for everyone to concern themselves with.
Yellow birch
Wetlands and beetles and frogs and old trees aren’t warm and fuzzy and emotionally evocative like baby seals, but they are no less important.
A very large, old and dying yellow birch
These massive old yellow birch stands are scheduled to be harvested for the nearby Nova Scotia Power biomass plant. Markets for more valuable products currently are at a historical low. There has been considerable debate about these stands regarding the Department of Natural Resources definition and the former NewPage self interpretation and manipulation of the definiton of old growth. It became apparent after Dave Williams of the Protected Areas Branch of the Department of the Environment visited these stands that to quote Dave ‘The GIS information system used by the forest industry, misrepresented the dominant species component in these stands.’ Consequently these ecologically significant stands were undervalued. There is local interest in trying to protect these truly old growth stands from the bottom end feeder in the forestry chain – BIOMASS. It took in excess of 200 years to establish this unique ecosystem, WHY CUT IT DOWN NOW?
Nice post, great photos. Thanks for speaking for the trees! I am working to save old-growth forests in the US. If you get a chance check my website: http://www.oldgrowthforest.net
Joan