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Bv Clvde Martin, Forest Engineer \(/estern Pine Association

Recent publicity drives, intended to capitalize on the American urge to be forever "saving" something or other, have now included our forests. And it is both encouraging and beneficial to find our people giving serious thought to the value and real necessity of managing our forest lands so they will contribute the greatest benefits to the largest number ,of people. Forest cover, forest industries, and a wide variety of forest products are prime necessities for civilized living. And to no group of our citizens are forests more necessary or better beloved than to those who make their living from themthe lumbermen. Nor is any group giving more thought or expending more real effort and money directed toward perpetuating our forest growth than is the western lumber industry.

But when we read press releases urging that laws be passed requiring the replacement of'every tree cut and advocating far reaching planting projects, we wonder why such efforts should not be directed torvard taking care of the forests we now have. What sense is there in planting 10,000 or 100,000 acres of forest per year and burning ttp 5@,000 acres ? Planting costs $10-$N per acre, adequate fire protection 10-20 jobs, and yet advocate more and more millions for relief ? These things just don't make sense.

For every tree now cut, there are literally hundreds of small trees and seedlings left on California's logging areas and Western Pine lumbermen are now spending more than $1,000,000 per year to protect these young trees from fire. Where fires are kept out, these forest trees are spreading out into old fields and old burns, ,repairing and hiding the scars left by fires, floods and erosion. Yet hundreds of incendiary fires are set each y.ar "n,1 thousands are started by careless motorists, campers and hunters. And when those who start fires illegally are caught, the Courts let them off or assess only nominal fines. By all means, let's plant up our burned areas at $20 per acre if they can be protected. But why begrudge 1O cents an acre to protect the forests we have ?

It does not make seuse !

Then there are the beetles. From 1931 through 1935 two species of pine beetles in California, Oregon, Washington, Idalto and Montana killed I1,273,042,W board feet of merchantable timber. During the same period the pine

Doueng or smcll trees cnd lumber industry in these the old treer qr€ cut Unless same states consumed leSS cents per acre. In other words, you can protect an acre of young growth for 100 years for the amount of money it costs ta replant it after the forest has been destroyed.

Why plant Sugar Pine, California's most valuable species, at $20 per acre, and refuse to protect Sugar Pine from the blister rust at $5-$5 per acre ? Why does California's Governor veto a modest appropriation for State co-operation in blister rust control which would save thousands of the liitle Sugcr Pines. than 10 billion feet. Yet during this time a beneficent Government eager to spend billions of dollars to pay people for not raising crops ancl not raising hogs could only spare some $25,000 per year to carry on laboratory work and surveys to aid in controlling this destructive agency. $100,000,000 of pay rolls gone forever, yet we could not afford a few thousand dollars more to save this potential employment !

Do you think this makes sense?

Can a private owner afford to hold forest lands for 40-50 years between harvests, pay taxes each year, pay the highest lumber wages in the world, give his employes good living conditions and steady work, provide free camping, structive agencies beyond his control ? Will laws requiring more expenditures on his land help, unless he can have some cooperation in protection in return for his tax moneyf

In other words, can these problems be solved by "amateur forestry" enforced by rnore regulatory lar,vs? Or should the public, acting through its State and Federal Governments, be willing to help the lumber industry solve

Hundreds ol reedllngs Iires

Iorest land, not hunting and chance that fishing on his lands for his investment will not the public, all on the be wiped out by de- its many problems on a co-operative basis ? The first step in sound forestry is adequate forest protection. Let's rvork that out bef'ore we place our reliance on elaborate, fanciful and costly schemes which promise so much and produce so little. In any case, we cannot afiord to continue to waste taxpayers' money without weighing carefully the results which mav be attained.

TREAIED IUT{BER

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