ForestBytes --- October 2001 Volume II, Issue 18 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 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. What's Happening? * Our Deepest Sympathies * Conference Summary * New Look for americanforests.org * Restoring Scorched Ecosystems * Holiday Gifts that Improve the Environment II. Check It Out! * The Outdoor Circle * ReLeaf for Grizzlies * Shaklee Helps Reduce Carbon Emissions * Project One, Two, Tree III. GLOBAL RELEAF Spotlight * Trees for Tigers, Russian Far East IV. Environmental News from ENN.com * "American farms could suffer from terrorist attacks" * "Forest ranger heads abroad to help eco-tourism" == What's Happening? ====================================== ------------------------------------------------------------ Our Deepest Sympathies ------------------------------------------------------------ Our thoughts and prayers go out to the thousands of people who suffered the loss of friends or family in the horrific, senseless September 11th attacks on the United States. Many of us at AMERICAN FORESTS had friends or colleagues among those killed or injured. Christine Snyder, an arborist with the Hawaii-based nonprofit The Outdoor Circle, was among the passengers killed in United Airlines' ill-fated Flight 93 that crashed in southwestern Pennsylvania. After attending AMERICAN FORESTS' recent 2001 National Urban Forest Conference in Washington, DC, Christine traveled to New York City for a few days. She then boarded Flight 93 in Newark to return home to her husband of only three months. We send our deepest condolences to Christine's family, friends, and colleagues at The Outdoor Circle as well as every other American scarred by the barbaric acts. AMERICAN FORESTS encourages everyone to support the organizations and people who have played such a critical role in the relief effort. American Red Cross - http://www.redcross.org/ NY Firefighter's Fund - http://store.yahoo.com/firedonations/ Salvation Army - https://secure.salvationarmy.org/salarmy.nsf/donation?openform&projectid=C76126A33A45258E85256AC50073DEE4 United Way - http://relief.yahoo.com/unitedway/ ------------------------------------------------------------ Conference Summary ------------------------------------------------------------ More than 800 people from across the United States and around the world attended AMERICAN FORESTS' 2001 National Urban Forest Conference. The conference brought urban foresters, city planners, citizen activists, and others together to talk about issues relating to the green infrastructure in our nation's cities. During the conference, attendees debated legislative processes, visited innovative stormwater control projects, and listened to panelists discuss wildlife protection, among other topics. USDA Forest Service, Eddie Bauer, The Davey Tree Expert Company, O'Doul's, the Casey Trees Endowment Fund, Pictometry, and ESRI sponsored the Conference. At a news conference, which kicked-off the four-day event, former Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman, Washington Mayor Anthony Williams, and others joined AMERICAN FORESTS' Gary Moll as he unveiled "Gray to Green: Reversing the National Urban Tree Deficit." The new study shows that more than 634 million trees are currently needed in America's urban areas. The report also includes a detailed analysis of Washington, DC's tree canopy through the use of high-resolution satellite images. The images clearly show that despite its good tree cover, the nation's capital--like many other cities across the United States--is becoming a city of sidewalks, parking lots, and buildings (gray structures) and losing trees (green infrastructure). "Most people will be amazed to see that more than 634 million trees are missing from America's cities," said Gary Moll, AMERICAN FORESTS' vice president. "But it reinforces something that AMERICAN FORESTS has been documenting for years: Our cities are paying a high price for the reduction of tree canopy." An article on the nation's tree deficit can be found in the Autumn issue of American Forests magazine. You'll receive a FREE copy of the magazine with your membership to AMERICAN FORESTS, a pioneer in using satellite imagery to assess urban tree cover. Join the nation's oldest nonprofit conservation organization at https://www.americanforests.org/acorn/test_acorn/membership/memberself/memberself.jsp?uid=1001425587531&verb=init&searchType=i&tx_type=nc&product=trees. Written proceedings of conference presentations will be available in late fall. You can purchase a copy for $35 plus $4 shipping (US) by calling AMERICAN FORESTS' Robby Ferguson at 202-955-4500 ext. 202 or by emailing your request to rferg@amfor.org. Read the National Urban Tree Deficit press release at http://www.americanforests.org/news/display.php?id=64. AMERICAN FORESTS is scheduled to unveil a new Regional Ecosystem Analysis of Portland, Oregon, at an October 18th news conference. You'll get a summary of the report in November's ForestBytes. ------------------------------------------------------------ New Look for americanforests.org ------------------------------------------------------------ AMERICAN FORESTS' website, www.americanforests.org, has been redesigned. Besides being more user friendly, the website features a new search function. We'd love to know what you think of the website's new look. Send your comments to our Webmaster, Josh Williams, at josh@amfor.org. ------------------------------------------------------------ Restoring Scorched Ecosystems ------------------------------------------------------------ Thousands of acres, mainly in the western United States, have been burned by wildfire in recent years and urgently need trees to stabilize hillsides and to protect important aquatic ecosystems. Your contribution to Wildfire ReLeaf will help AMERICAN FORESTS plant tens of thousands of trees in fragile ecosystems that desperately need regeneration. This large-scale reforestation effort will help clean the air, purify the water, and provide critical wildlife habitat. Because the USDA Forest Service is matching every dollar donated to the program, there is a TWO-FOR-ONE IMPACT. Your donation of $25 plants 50 trees, $250 plants 500 trees-a full acre. Wildfire ReLeaf, a campaign unveiled by AMERICAN FORESTS one year ago, plants trees in areas damaged by catastrophic wildfire. It also helps people understand the role wildfire plays in ecosystems and suggests actions they can take to reduce the risk of wildfire. Tell a friend about Wildfire ReLeaf and support this important program by planting trees via https://www.americanforests.org/acorn/test_acorn/treeself/treesself.jsp?uid=1001427773281&verb=init&searchType=i&tx_type=nc&product=trees. The Autumn issue of American Forests magazine gives you a historical perspective of wildfire in the United States. It includes excerpts from "Year of the Fires," a recent book by fire ecology expert Stephen J. Pyne. ------------------------------------------------------------ Holiday Gifts that Improve the Environment ------------------------------------------------------------ The holiday season is right around the corner. Have you started shopping yet? If not, there's no need to panic. AMERICAN FORESTS is again making it easy for everyone to give earth-friendly gifts that provide a lifetime of environmental benefits--trees. For a minimum donation of $15, you can have a decorative certificate sent to friends or loved ones showing that trees have been planted in their name in a Global ReLeaf ecosystem restoration project. If you plant 500 trees, you'll plant an entire acre of critical forest habitat for that special someone! Trees are a one-size-fits-all gift that will clean the air for your grandchildren and their children. How many holiday gifts provide wildlife habitat and actually improve the planet's health? Get some of your holiday shopping done now by visiting https://www.americanforests.org/acorn/test_acorn/holiday/holiday.jsp?uid=1001685459093&verb=init&searchType=i&tx_type=nc&product=Gift%20Of%20Trees == Check It Out! =========================================== * One of the reasons Honolulu and other sites in Hawaii remain so beautiful is because of the efforts of The Outdoor Circle, a nonprofit conservation organization with eleven offices on four of Hawaii's islands. For close to 90 years, the organization has been "keeping Hawaii clean, green, and beautiful by protecting, preserving, and enhancing the environment for future generations." Last year, The Outdoor Circle and AMERICAN FORESTS collaborated on a tree-planting project with specialty retailer Eddie Bauer that featured the planting of the company's 3-millionth Global ReLeaf tree. Planting, advocacy, and education are three important elements of The Outdoor Circle's mission. The fourth is protection, which includes protecting native ecosystems and eradicating invasive plants, an ongoing problem in Hawaii. Learn more about The Outdoor Circle at http://www.outdoorcircle.org/. * If you are a loyal ForestBytes reader, you know we are featuring a number of the species benefiting from Global ReLeaf tree-planting projects as we approach the planting of the 20-millionth tree (expected to occur in early spring 2002). Among the critters being helped by the trees is the grizzly bear. Grizzly bears feed on a variety of animals and plants. In the Greater Yellowstone Area, experts have identified five foods that are essential for the bear's survival such as elk and bison, cutthroat trout, army cutworm moths, and whitebark pine seeds. Scientists only recently realized the ecological significance of whitebark pine. These pines survive in harsh windy and frigid alpine sites, conditions that kill most trees. The 1988 Yellowstone fires and an introduced fungus, white pine blister rust, decimated whitebark pine populations. In a 2000-2001 Global ReLeaf project, AMERICAN FORESTS planted over 5,000 whitebark pines in Henry's Fork, Idaho, an area bordering Yellowstone National Park. Whitebark pine photo - http://www.northwestconnections.org/images/whitebark_copy.JPG Grizzly bear photos - http://www.exzooberance.com/exZOOberance/Photo%20Gallery/Bears%2001/Grizzly%20Bear%2042079.jpg http://www.exzooberance.com/exZOOberance/Photo%20Gallery/Bears%2001/Grizzly%20Bear%2042072.jpg * For the second consecutive year, Shaklee Corporation is generously sponsoring AMERICAN FORESTS' Personal Climate Change Calculator, which allows you to calculate the estimated amounts of carbon dioxide you emit each year (also known as your carbon debt). All you have to do is answer a few questions about your lifestyle, such as the number of miles you drive each year, and the Personal Climate Change Calculator determines the estimated number of trees you should plant to offset your annual carbon dioxide emissions. As you know, carbon dioxide emissions are a leading cause of the greenhouse effect or global warming. Planting trees helps reduce CO2 levels because trees take in and sequester carbon dioxide and carbon and release oxygen, an important element all humans enjoy. What is your carbon debt? Visit http://www.americanforests.org/resources/ccc/ Founded in 1956 and headquartered in Pleasanton, California, Shaklee Corporation is recognized as an industry pioneer and a trusted name in health and wellness. The company is committed to treading lightly on the planet by providing environmentally friendly household and personal care products. Shaklee supports AMERICAN FORESTS' Personal Climate Change Calculator as part of the company's Climate Neutral program. Learn more about Climate Neutral by clicking to http://www2.shaklee.com/company/cnmain.cfm. Shaklee's website is http://shaklee.com/ * "I wanted something that was interdisciplinary and I really wanted the project to serve as a community service." That's the message from Lyn Malone, an 8th-grade World Geography teacher in Barrington, Rhode Island, who has made AMERICAN FORESTS' CITYgreen software a key component of an innovative educational program she co-founded called Project One, Two, Tree. Malone and other teachers across Rhode Island are now using CITYgreen to map tree canopies and conduct tree inventories around their schools. This gives students hands-on, real-world knowledge of computer software applications as it educates them about the benefits trees provide communities and teaches them the importance of long-term planning. Barrington Middle School is one of many institutions using CITYgreen as an educational tool. Project One, Two, Tree is featured in the Clippings section of American Forests magazine's Autumn 2001 issue. Learn more about Project One, Two, Tree by visiting www.barringtonmiddle.org/onetwotree. If you are you unfamiliar with CITYgreen, click to http://www.americanforests.org/productsandpubs/citygreen/. ******************* ARE YOU A MEMBER??********************* Our mission is to "help people improve the environment with trees and forests. We plant trees." You can help today by joining AMERICAN FORESTS. For your $25 membership, you'll get 25 trees planted for you in a damaged ecosystem or forest restoration project. You'll 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 Spotlight ==================== Trees for Tigers, Russian Far East This year AMERICAN FORESTS is planting 200,000 trees in the Russian Far East as part of "Trees for Tigers," a project designed to restore forest habitat for the endangered Siberian tiger. Planting native Korean pines, a keystone species in the area, will not only increase habitat and provide food for tiger prey and nearby residents, but will help employ local Russian citizens. Last year, 300,000 seedlings were planted in three areas of protected Siberian tiger habitat, replanting more than 370 acres total. Partners include the Far Eastern Branch of the Pacific Institute of Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences and the Russian Federal Forest Service's Primorsky Krai Department of Forestry. Support Trees for Tigers by visiting www.treesfortigers.org. Tell a friend about AMERICAN FORESTS' efforts to improve the planet with trees and forests by encouraging her or him to sign up for ForestBytes. == ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS AND FEATURES FROM ENN.COM ============ * "American farms could suffer from terrorist attacks" And, see how the Farm Bill could help America's forests at http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2001/09/09202001/s_45018.asp * "Forest ranger heads abroad to help eco-tourism" http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2001/09/09202001/s_45018.asp ____________________________ ForestBytes __________________ Thanks for your support of ForestBytes, AMERICAN FORESTS' monthly email newsletter. 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/membr_bnfts/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - http://www.americanforests.org AMERICAN FORESTS People Caring for Trees and Forests since 1875. ___________________________________________________________