ForestBytes --- June 2002 Volume III, Issue 26 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.americanforests.org AMERICAN FORESTS People Caring for Trees and Forests Since 1875 To subscribe to ForestBytes: Visit http://www.americanforests.org/ If you find this information valuable, please pass it on to friends and colleagues. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Announcements ¤ Yankees Support Memorial Tree Groves ¤ Girl Scouts' Memorial Day Tribute ¤ Liberty Tree Campaign II What's Happening ¤ Wildfire update ¤ Implementing the 2002 Farm Bill ¤ The Winner of Guess the Tree ¤ Half the US Population Is Not Breathing Easy III. Global ReLeaf ¤ Russian Students' "Trees for Tigers" Drawings IV. Environmental News from ENN.com ¤ "Parcel doubles Big Sur Wildlands and Other Stories" ¤ "Sandstorm-swept China to Spend Billions on Trees" ¤ "Kenya President Vows 'Drastic Measures' to Stop Deforestation" ¤ "Bangladesh, India to Work to Save Sundarban Forest" == ANNOUNCEMENTS ================================================ ---------------------------------------------------------------- Yankees Support Memorial Tree Groves ---------------------------------------------------------------- In September, the 26-time World Champion New York Yankees are slated to be hitting home runs in the direction of a very special tree. The team has joined AMERICAN FORESTS and Eddie Bauer to help plant the first Memorial Tree in Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park. The tree, scheduled to be planted on September 11 at Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park, will be presented during a pregame ceremony on September 8. This summer, the Yankees also plan to auction off a tree during a home game and donate the proceeds to the Memorial Tree Groves campaign. Steve Karsay, Rondell White and Ron Coomer posed for a publicity shoot at Yankee stadium with two green ash trees--the official wood used for major league baseball bats. The photo can be viewed at http://www.americanforests.org/campaigns/memorial_trees/groves/ As our nation continues to rebuild the communities affected by the loss of September 11, we believe that planting trees is a fitting tribute to the strength and perseverance of America. You can help us remember those who lost their lives with a donation to help plant one tree for each life lost in New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, D.C. Visit your local Eddie Bauer retail store, online at www.eddiebauer.com or donate through Eddie Bauer catalogs. Just ask to add $1 or more to your purchase total or visit www.eddiebauer.com for more information. Tell a friend! Send a postcard today at http://www.americanforests.org/postcards/createcard.php?postcard_id=9 ----------------------------------------------------------------- Girl Scouts' Memorial Day Tribute ----------------------------------------------------------------- As AMERICAN FORESTS continues its campaign to plant a memorial tree for each victim of September 11th, over Memorial Day weekend, the organization took at look back at the memorial grove that started it all. In Washington, D.C., area Girl Scouts and veterans teamed up with AMERICAN FORESTS to honor World War I heroes this Memorial Day, by tying patriotic ribbons around a grove of trees planted more than 80 years ago. In 1921, AMERICAN FORESTS and the American Legion planted more than 500 trees in honor of the soldiers who gave their lives during World War I. Complete with copper plaques, the trees were dedicated by First Lady Florence Harding, who was also a vice president of AMERICAN FORESTS (then called the American Forestry Association). Although not all of the original trees still stand, and nearly all of the plauqes are missing or unreadable, AMERICAN FORESTS, the American Legion and the World War II Veterans Committee, the members of three Girl Scout troops used the ribbon-tying event to help restore the grove’s status as a memorial to the soldiers who died in the "War to End All Wars." "It is nice to be putting ribbons here for people who were actually in those wars," said twelve year-old girl scout Katie McDaniel. "It’s really important now, especially since we just had September 11." ----------------------------------------------------------------- Liberty Trees Campaign ----------------------------------------------------------------- AMERICAN FORESTS presented a seedling from Maryland’s Liberty Tree to the state of Maryland in an Annapolis ceremony in May, the first of 14 planned presentations up and down the East Coast. Executive Director Deborah Gangloff gave state Natural Resources Secretary Charles Fox a tree grown from seeds collected when the 400 year-old Liberty Tree was cut down after being damaged by Hurricane Floyd in 1999. The tree, which stood on what is now the campus of St. John’s College in Annapolis, served as a meeting place for groups of American patriots. Each of the original 13 colonies had a similar tree, but Maryland’s was the last standing. AMERICAN FORESTS plans to present seedlings descended from the Liberty Tree to the 13 original states and to President George W. Bush. The 14 seedlings are not the only descendents of the Liberty Tree. Taylor Guitars recently used to 30,000 pounds of the tree’s wood to make 400 limited edition guitars. The news of AMERICAN FORESTS' Liberty Trees Campaign, and Taylor's limited edition guitars made headlines in Washington, D.C. and Maryland newspapers, including the Washington Post. Visit http://www.americanforests.org/news/display.php?id=46 for the entire story, as seen in the Washington Post. The web page also includes photos of the event. == WHAT'S HAPPENING =================================================== * On May 13, President Bush signed into law the 2002 Farm Bill, officially known as the "Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002." In an address that was broadcast to USDA employees across the country, Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman said that the USDA is committed to a timely and efficient farm bill implementation process. She noted that the farm bill contains new programs that are widespread and impact many sectors including farm services, natural resources, conservation, rural development, nutrition, food safety, research, pests and diseases, as well as international trade. The measure establishes new authorities and additional rules, regulations and procedures. "The President signed the farm bill almost immediately upon receiving it from the Congress so we here at USDA could begin with the important task of implementation," Veneman said. "Now the hard work begins and while it will be a difficult task, our goal is to cut red tape so we can get the job done." Included in the Farm Bill, Secretary Veneman has been directed to establish a Forest Land Enhancement Program (FLEP) for the purpose of providing financial, technical, educational and related assistance to State Foresters to assist private landowners in actively managing their land. The Farm Bill also reflects the significant Federal interest in enhancing the protection of communities from wildfire. The bill establishes the “Enhanced Community Fire Protection Program.” In cooperation with state foresters, this program is designed to promote optimal firefighting efficiency at the Federal, State and local levels; expand outreach and education programs to communities about fire protection; and establish provide incentives for private landowners to establish space around homes and property that is defensible against wildfire. To learn more about the Farm Bill, click to http://www.usda.gov/farmbill/ * Drought in the western United States has created extremely dry conditions, jumpstarting the annual wildfire season. As we speak, firefighters struggled today (Monday, June 3) to contain wildfires on opposite ends of the country. In New Jersey, crews started to gain the upper hand as a 1,000-acre forest fire burned out of control near a state park. Farther west, firefighters battled three separate wildfires in Colorado, while two forest fires roared in Southern California. Firefighters are also thinning trees and underbrush as they battle large fires near Tucson, Arizona and in northern New Mexico. Across the American West, extreme drought conditions are acting as fuel for wildfires, providing for a premature and dangerous start to the fire season this year. Many national forests in the Southwest have been partially closed to visitors. This past weekend fires burned tens of thousands of acres of public land in Arizona and New Mexico alone. Fifteen miles south of Tuscon, a fire in the Coronado National Forest is burning thousands of acres of Chaparell, Ponderosa Pine, and mixed conifer trees. So far 100 people have been evacuated, and 700 nearby structures remain threatened. The United States Forest Service is currently using 913 people to fight fires. That's over two-thirds of the Forest Service's fire-fighting resources in Arizona and New Mexico alone. Crews are using helicopters and air tankers to drop fire retardant on the flames, while bulldozers and "hand crews" work on the ground. Fire fighters are thinning brush and small trees in order to choke the fire off at its leading edge. Meanwhile, in northern New Mexico, wildfire has burned nearly 13,000 acres in the past few days. Fire officials say it is now 50 percent contained. The Southwest is struggling through its third straight year of severe draught. During a recent stop in New Mexico, Secretary Veneman declared the Southwest a draught emergency disaster area. Dry weather is creating the perfect conditions for wildfire, and experts claim the year 2002 will be one of the worst seen in over a decade. In the year 2000, a record-breaking number of wildfires burned millions of acres, and according to experts this year may be comparable. Conditions are expected to continue through mid summer in the Southwest, until thunderstorms accompanied by heavy rains reach the region. Still, there is danger in storms too. Next to human-related causes, lightning is the most common cause for wildfire. To find out about how you can help restore the burned areas of the United States, visit www.wildfirereleaf.org . * For Karen Lanphier, quick witt does pay off. Lanphier was the first to correctly identify the Eleanor Roosevelt white ash, the historic tree described in last month's ForestBytes. Karen responded just hours after the contest began. She made the correct identification after reading clues describing a tall white ash on a New York estate, owned by a First Lady who devoted herself to social reform and support of her husband’s political goals. To recognize Karen's quick response, AMERICAN FORESTS will send her a historic tree of her own, grown from a seed-hand-picked from the Roosevelt Ash. Jen Weimer of Nottingham, New Hampshire was the contests' runner-up. She too will receive a prize. Jen will receive her very own seed kit, including the seeds of Apollo XIV's Sycamore Tree. The trees grown from these seeds are direct decedents from "the moon seeds" which orbited the moon 34 times in 1971. Keep reading ForestBytes for more chances to win in future months. * Did you know that over half of the US population breathes unhealthy air? More than 142 million US citizens are breathing unhealthy amounts of ozone air pollution - making this the third year in a row that half the US public has had to endure air pollution, according to the American Lung Association. Of the 678 counties where ozone is monitored, 400 received an ‘F’ grade in the Association’s State of the Air 2002 report. Three quarters of senior citizens and more than 70% of children who had an asthma attack in the last year live in these ‘F’ grade areas. The Association is gravely concerned about delays in implementation of the Clean Air Act, as a series of legal and other issues have led to some of the most significant protections being put on hold for the last five years. As our human population continues to grow, our urban areas are expanding at an alarming rate. Consequently, our trees and forests are disappearing just as rapidly and can no longer clean the air as readily. The more trees we can incorporate into our urban planning, the more we will, quite literally, breath easier. To learn more about the benefits of planting trees in urban areas, visit http://www.americanforests.org/productsandpubs/citygreen/ ********************* ARE YOU A MEMBER??************************ You can do your part to help the environment today by joining AMERICAN FORESTS. Not only are 25 trees planted for you in a damaged ecosystem or forest restoration project, but you will also receive: - A free subscription to our quarterly magazine - A free Big Trees calendar - A window decal Join Today! Visit http://www.americanforests.org/ ***************************************************************** == GLOBAL RELEAF ========================= To help support Trees for Tigers, 61 Russian elementary students drew pictures of Siberian tigers in their native forest habitat. Five finalists were selected to be published in AMERICAN FORESTS magazine this fall. The children of the Russian villages Lazo, Preobrazhenie, Benevskoe, and Chernoruchie helped plant 1000 trees this year, and plan on planting another 1000 trees in the near future. You can see these drawings, as well as pass them along to your friends and family, at http://www.americanforests.org/postcards/ Join us in our historic partnership with Russian scientists to bring the Siberian tiger back from the brink of extinction. Today, only some 350 adult Siberian tigers remain alive in the Russian Far East. Our goal: 200,000 trees planted in the Russian far east to expand tiger habitat this year -- millions more in the years to come. Join us! Visit www.treesfortigers.org today. To plant trees through Global ReLeaf, visit: https://www.amfor.org/newforms/treesself.php3 == ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS AND FEATURES FROM ENN.COM ================= * "Parcel Doubles Big Sur Wildlands and Other Stories" http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2002/05/05302002/s_47252.asp * "Sandstorm-swept China to Spend Billions on Trees" http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2002/05/05152002/reu_47213.asp * "Kenya President Vows 'Drastic Measures' to Stop Deforestation" http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2002/05/05012002/ap_47080.asp *"Bangladesh, India to Work to Save Sundarban Forest" http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2002/05/05142002/reu_47196.asp ______________________________________ ForestBytes ______________ Don't forget to forward this information to friends or colleagues. FEEDBACK OR OTHER ASSISTANCE: mailto:forestbytes@amfor.org PLANT TREES WITH AMERICAN FORESTS: http://www.americanforests.org/global_releaf/ BECOME A MEMBER OF AMERICAN FORESTS: http://www.americanforests.org/membership/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - http://www.americanforests.org AMERICAN FORESTS People Caring for Trees and Forests since 1875. _________________________________________________________________