By Tony Orman
In the light of the environmental and life-giving actions provided by trees, it is tragic that trees have been felled and burned remorselessly. –John Perlin
Man never learns the folly of denuding forests
The message is strong and clear from this 520-page long book — Mankind has exploited forests since time immemorial.
Such a big tome promises to be long and heavy, that is, tedious, but it is far from that as the author delves way back into history, to ancient civilisation times about the felling of forests mainly to supply wood to aid military power (e.g. ship masts) or housing, felling forests to establish farmland or other purposes.
The book is a startling revelation of the myopic attitude that has accompanied the destruction of the world’s forests. The message is inescapable – humans have been short-sightedly exploiting – indeed raping and pillaging — forest resources since the first civilisations.
Given its length, “A Forest Journey” is surprisingly easy reading with the numerous illustrations and photographs enhancing this.
A long history of deforestation
The author writes “new insight into the causes of the end of the Permian extinction, (251 million years ago) when Earth lost almost all life on land and sea, suggests that rising carbon dioxide levels and massive tree loss were the primary culprits, demonstrating that when considering the survival of life on Earth, we should worry more about deforestation than asteroid collisions.
In the light of the environmental and life-giving actions provided by trees, it is tragic that trees have been felled and burned remorselessly.
The lessons of history should have been heeded but it’s not so, particularly with on-going destruction of rain forests by corporates, especially in Brazil.
Deforestation continues at an alarming pace—-people continue to remove trees at an alarming rate of 15 billion per year. Sadly, the present assault on our forests is part of the same cycle begun thousands of years ago.
But despite the history, the author is optimistic and writes “it also encourages hope that we can learn from past mistakes and break out of the cycle deforestation and land degradation that undermined earlier civilisations.”
Siltation in Italy
The consequences undermining human life have been profound. For example in Venice (Italy) about 1500 AD, the deforestation led to silt and debris filling up coastal lagoons. An An Italian forester explained that in forested times, the rain was absorbed by the forest floor litter and tree roots, the forest canopy shaded the snow, allowing it to melt slowly and there was little if any flooding.
“The water flowed in orderly fashion down the riverbeds and very little mud and organic debris rarely entered the water courses.”
But the wood was needed. Wood was king and timber was used in ship building, housing and as fuel for iron smelting and glassware manufacture. Farmers burned forests to make way for pasture land.
But as the Italian forester lamented, The well-being of the commerce and security of the Republic is affected “since there is no vegetation to retain rainwater and the snow lies exposed to the sun, in an instant, after a storm, water will precipitously swoop down from the mountains to the river’s mouth and will carry such enormous quantities of debris as to break pasture land, devastate the countryside, destroy buildings, sometimes entire towns – and with driving force bring all the filthiest material into the sea.”
Similar issues in New Zealand
While the book does not deal specifically with New Zealand, it has happened here. And it’s still happening.
In the Marlborough Sounds, the clear felling of commercial forests has exposed the soil to the elements resulting in heavy siltation of the inshore ecosystem as testified by over 15 research papers warning of the severe degradation.
Tragically the local council has sat on the research reports and done little. Clear-felling continues and new commercial pine forests are planted, so that within 30 years it too will be clear felled.
Damage to the Venetian economy
Overseas throughout the centuries, the economic ill effects were inevitable, reveals A Forest Journey. In Italy, local forests were gone and timber had to be imported into Venice, adding heavy additional costs for the local economy.
Shipbuilders took their business to other countries such as Spain. By 1606 over 50 percent of ships in the Venetian merchant fleet had been built outside the region. By 1700 almost 80 percent had to be built abroad.
It’s a fascinating read and not surprisingly the book gained it recognition as a Harvard Classic in Science and World History and as one of Harvard’s “One-Hundred Great Books.”
One might cavil that the historical information is perhaps repetitive, but that’s the point, the exploitation cycles keep repeating over and over again. So often mankind doesn’t learn from its mistakes. And indeed, there is an urgent need to learn from the catastrophic mistake of treating trees and forests with a disdainful avarice.
But like Europe and the US as recounted in A Forest Journey, New Zealand’s exploitation of forests goes hundreds of years back in history. Lessons are never learned from the mistakes made.
Up to 40 percent of the forest was burnt within 200 years of Māori migrants settling in New Zealand about 1250 AD as the new migrants hunted the flightless moa and burned forests to flush the giant birds from cover, especially in the east cost of the South Island. Forests were burned to make way for cultivation. The biggest devastation followed with the 19th century European settlers burning forests to make way for farmlands.
There’s a strong, urgent message for the world – New Zealand included – in A Forest Journey. Well-illustrated with impressive colour photos, black and white photos and historical diagrams and maps, it is highly recommended.
A Forest Journey subtitled The Role of Trees in the Fate of Civilisation by John Perlin is published by Patagonia Books and can be purchased from
https://www.patagonia.co.nz/collections/books or through a good bookseller.
I recollect from schoolboy history, that when William invaded in 1066, it was said that the forests of England were so dense that a squirrel could journey the length and breadth of England without setting foot on the ground!
My, how things have changed…
Forests are vital to the working of the environment. They give living creatures oxygen, for humans they give shelter, jobs, water, nourishment and fuel. People are dependent on forests, but at the on-going rate of exploitation the fate of forests may determine the eventual fate of humans.
Forests perform vital functions. Forests are the most biologically diverse ecosystems on land, habitat to more than 80 percent of the terrestrial species of animals, plants and insects. Yet, despite all of the essential ecological, economic, social and health benefits, global deforestation continues. A grand and great effort by the author.
As so often I think of the lines in the song, “When will they ever learn?” There is so much compelling evidence concerning the disasters caused by deforestation it is simply mind-blowing that those in power continue on this lunatic agenda.
It is great to see the emphasis on deforestation as an evil. Our NZ rivers evolved in a forested land. It is only since the arrival of humans that erosion and thus degradation accelerated. When trout were first liberated most rivers were in an ideal state for their survival. The wholesale deforestation and clearance of banks has become disastrous for river biological communities as well as towns and cities along their banks – all to enhance the incomes of a select few (often living far from the problems they created). Well done to the reviewer in highlighting this publication.