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Sustainable Development.

Battle for Trees

It would seem an appropriate place to begin this essay by defining what sustainable development is before going on to discuss its relationship to trees specifically, and then to some of the technology behind the sustainable development of forests, finally offering some thought on the future.

What is sustainable development?

Forest management, in its present form, adopts a position identical to that of any other managerial activity designed to accommodate a large, open system; forest management is a conscious human action that leads to a defined goal. Broadly speaking forest management is designed to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

It can legitimately be argued that the most notable recent development in forest management is the sustainable development approach. Probably the key facet of this approach is the use of new forestry practices that allow us to conform to the stated goal of maintaining the forest ecosystem in a sustainable condition. With this approach, human activity in the forest should not negatively affect the ability of the forest to continue in virtually its present state. It should be recognised that this is a rather idealised goal and does not take into account a number of factors, such as natural climate change.

The definition of sustainable forest management above is fine as far as it goes, but it is vague and leaves several questions unanswered; what is a forest ecosystem, what condition was the forest in at a given point in history, how can condition be measured, how can future climate conditions be predicted.

Sustainable forest development should be, and indeed has to be, a multidisciplinary effort. It requires the collaboration between governments and government departments, between non-governmental agencies (NGO's) and people. It therefore involves:-

• Planning the production of wood for commercial purposes, as well as meeting local needs.
• The setting aside of areas to act as plant or wildlife reserves.
• Ensuring that the conversion of land from forest to other uses is done in a controlled and regulated way.
• Ensuring the regeneration of wasteland and the integration of trees into farm land.

Forests in crisis.

There is legion evidence for a global failure by society and governments alike to practice sustainable development of the world's forests; some have even argued for the current paradigm, despite the clear devastation being caused. Some estimate that almost half of the Earth's original forest cover is now gone, most of the destruction happening within the last 30 years, with only 20% remaining in large tracts undisturbed forest, what the World Resources Institute calls frontier forests. Forests continue to be eliminated at an alarming rate, but why is this? The main reason has to be human population growth. This is arguably the most significant threat to sustainable forest development in the world today.

South argued that rationally it should be impossible to maintain sustainable development of forests under a constantly growing human population. By 2100 the most conservative and optimistic estimates for human population are between 8.5 and 10 billion, with a worth case scenario estimate of in excess of 100 billion. If human population continues to increase at anything like the rate it did during the last century then sustainable development of forests is likely to be neither possible nor important. For such a massive population, relying on ever more sparse natural resources, under conditions of climate change; sustainable forest management would likely be the least of their worries. Probably the most important element in the search for sustainable forest management in the light of the trend in human population is simply the increasing recognition of the scale of the problem. There is a clear and increasingly pressing need for solutions, locally, nationally and globally. Over the course of the next 20 years, the global demand for wood is expected to increase by an average of 84 million cubic metres annually; almost double the current levels. Where will this increasing demand come from, Sutton has argued that the only possible solution is a massive and immediate investment in forest plantation, but there seems no political will to undertake such a policy in any major country.

Why do we need trees?

That global warming is a phenomenon; and that at least some o this is anthropogenic in source, seems now beyond doubt. Global warming appears to have been relatively slight to this point, perhaps 0.6^oC over the last century, but by 2030 perhaps another 1-4.5^oC are expected, unless human action is greatly curtailed; but with airline fuel set to become the single biggest source of greenhouse gasses, an ever increasing appetite fir cheap air travel and a total lack of political will to make the difficult and unpopular decisions to put tax on airline fuel, there seems little hope that the rate of global warming will decline.

The most obvious reason we need trees is that they act to remove carbon from the atmosphere by means of photosynthesis, secondary to this they also act as a massive carbon store. Burning trees releases vast amounts of carbon back into the atmosphere, although it has to be noted that not all trees that are cut down will be burned.

What is the role of technology in the case?

Due to the limitations of the word count it seems that the most appropriate method is to examine one area of the implementation of technology for the sustainable development of forests; this being remote sensing. The general role of remote sensing, within the framework of sustainable development, is not well understood. Remote sensing has been a valuable source of information over the past few decades in mapping and monitoring forest activities. There is an ever increasing need for quality information, and given an improving level of technology in remote sensing, particularly from satellites, this technology is set to become critical in sustainable forest development in the future; but what is remote sensing?

Remote sensing is usually defined as being comprised of 2 separate yet distinct activities:-

• Data collection by sensors usually designed to detect electromagnetic energy. They are sometimes ground-based, but more usually aerial or satellite based.
• Interpretation of the collected data.

As can be expected the methods and technology involved have shown massive advances in recent years. Remote sensing in and of itself is obviously not a new idea though, it can be said to have its origins in the use of cameras and balloons in the nineteenth century. The most common remote sensing technology used in forestry is conducted using optical or infrared sensors; and by far the most common method of delivery is the aerial camera. Future technological developments in this field will be in the area of microwave, thermal and ultraviolet portions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Applications of remote sensing data to sustainable forest development are usually presented in 4 classification areas:-

• Forest cover type.
• Forest structure.
• Change detection.
• Forest modelling.

Each of these categories would be further subdivided into separate individual issues. The analysis of the data from remote sensing sources relies upon an understanding of these 4 categories and the role each plays in sustainable forest development.

Context within sustainable development.

It is vital, or course, (as alluded to earlier), that the battle for trees should be seen within the context of wider social, economic, demographic and green issues. If there is a sudden change in world political thinking in the major nations, then planting more trees simply wont be enough. More efficient power generation methods need to be achieved, whether this is through power stations, hydro electric power, wind or solar power. Industry needs to become more efficient in its power usage and we desperately need to address the domestic transportation issue, including greener cars and a reduction in cheap air travel and we need, as individuals, to consume less; particularly in the west were obesity is becoming a very significant issue.

Advice for the future.

It is imperative that the governments of the world, particularly in the west, come to realise the scale of the problem. It is no longer acceptable for leaders like George W. Bush to say that he will do nothing to harm the US economy as an excuse for not implementing the Kyoto protocols. Private citizens also need to become more aware of what they can do to reduce their carbon emissions, and become aware that they can plant trees in order that they become carbon neutral. A massive government investment program need to begin immediately to plant trees and to formulate a genuine sustainable development policy, this would best be done internationally as every country will be affected by global warming. Politicians also need to make difficult decisions; a massive tax on airline fuel would be extremely unpopular with voters, but absolutely necessary in order to reduce the CO2 emissions from air travel, which is set to become the single biggest source or carbon pollution over the next few years. Finally, industry, particularly the automotive industry, needs to put more effort into creating energy efficient products, be they cars, televisions etc. There is no doubt that difficult choices face all of us over the coming decades, avoiding difficult solutions is simply no longer acceptable.

Bibliography.

• K. Arabas & J. Bowerstock eds., Forest Futures: Science, Politics and Policy for the Next Century (Oxford 2004)
• C. J. Barrow, Developing the Environment (Harlow 1995)
• M. S. Boyce & A. Haney (eds.), Ecosystem Management (New Haven 1997)
• D. Bryant, The Last Frontier Forests: Ecosystems and Economies on the Edge (Washington DC. 1997)
• Canadian Institute of Forestry, Forests and Climate change (Ottawa 2000)
• W. B. Cohen et al., An Introduction to Digital Methods in Remote Sensing of Forested Ecosystems: Focus on the Pacific Northwest, USA, Environ. Manage., 1996, 20, 421-435
• S. E. Franklin, Remote Sensing for Sustainable Forest Management (London 2001)
• C. Holden, Betting on the Future, Science, 1995, 268, 1281
• J. P. Kimmins, Forest Ecology: A Foundation for Sustainable Management (New Jersey 1997)
• M. A. Lefsky et al., Surface Lidar Remote Sensing of Basal Area and Biomass in Deciduous Forests of Eastern Maryland, USA, Rem. Sensing Environ., 1999, 67, 83-98
• C. E. Olson & F. P. Weber, Foresters' Roles in Remote Sensing, J. For., 2000, 98, 11-12
• P. H. Raven & J. A. McNeely, Biological Extinction: its Scope and Meaning for us. 13-32 in L. D. Guruswamy & J. A. McNeely, Eds. Protection of Global Biodiversity: Converging Strategies, (Durham 1999)
• D. Rousseau, Strategies at the National and International Levels for Sustainable Forest management, For. Chron., 1998, 74, 220-3
• H. H. Shugart, Terrestrial Ecosystems in Changing Environments (Cambridge 1998)
• D. B. South, How can we Feign Sustainability with an Increasing Population? New For., 1999, 19, 193-212
• W. R. J. Sutton, The Need for Planted Forests and the Example of Radiata Pine, New. For., 1999, 17, 95-109
• H. Sverdrup & I. Stjernquist, Developing Principles and Models for Sustainable Forestry in Sweden (London 2002)

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