A CALL FOR ETHICS IN FORESTRY

Nor is the belief that this forest is resilient fully accurate. Granted, our forests did recover from the logging that occurred around the turn of the century, but forests were not clearcut at that time, trees were felled with cross-cut saws and axes, and logs were skidded by draft animals and often floated down waterways to mills. By necessity, muscle power was more selectively and less destructively applied on forest sites than today's harvesting technology of chainsaws, heavy machinery, and logging trucks. In addition, huge debts associated with the purchase and maintenance of modern logging equipment often leave little room for operator care or land ethics; the logger must maximize daily harvest simply to survive and to service the interest on loans.

In addition to heavy-handed harvesting, air pollution also threatens the resilience of our forest. From a distance, our mountains are still summer-green and covered with trees. But, when examined in detail, we see many symptoms of poor health. Our work monitoring forest health in Kentucky as part of the five-state Appalachian Forest Action Project has confirmed observations elsewhere that many stands and species are exhibiting unexpectedly high rates of mortality. Wild populations of Flowering Dogwood may soon be exterminated by a fungal disease that seems to be stimulated by acid rain, and poor health and die-back are widespread for such species as Butternut, Black Oak, Hickories, and even the hearty Yellow-Poplar. And there is more to come, as rumors abound of the immanent eruption of deadly pests of Hemlock and Beech, and as the Gypsy Moth, a major defoliator of hardwoods in the Northeast, continues to move our way. Unfortunately, most foresters and other natural resources professionals are in a state of classic denial. They ignore the mounting evidence that the trees they love are hurting and go about business as usual, hoping that the symptoms will go away or that they will prove to be part of some natural self-correcting cycle.

One cannot help but notice increased logging in our forests today. Log trucks now outnumber coal trucks, and logs have replaced coal in storage yards. Kentucky's forests have been identified as an exploitable resource, and large corporations are moving in. If not controlled, wholesale logging to satisfy the demands of these forest industries will degrade our forests beyond repair. To prevent this, a concerted effort is needed on the part of citizens and state officials to ensure that we move toward sustainable forestry rather than toward exploitation and environmental destruction. As a minimum, we should insist on an end to clearcutting and on the implementation of effective forest practices legislation. This is reasonable. Morally, we owe at least this much to the Earth itself and to future generations who will live on the Earth; politically, state-wide polls show that the majority of Kentuckians love the forest and wish to keep it in a flourishing state .