Logging In California

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Driving along the old California logging roads, you see the trees start to thin out and the roads become illuminated. You begin to wonder, what happened to these beautiful trees and why are there only stumps left behind? Out here in the massive trees of California, the effects of humans are becoming even more prominent. With less than 5% left of the tallest trees in the world, and only 2.5% of them protected, the forests are suffering. “Many remaining groves, both protected and unprotected, are threatened by significant alteration of surrounding watersheds from development and logging which can increase the frequency and severity of floods, fires, and sedimentation,” stated D. Olson. Logging has brought in many invasive species including bark beetles, which attack and kill live trees, and are then known as …show more content…

“The debris left behind at logging sights inviting even more diseases and pests.” Logging also compresses the soil. Soil compression restricts root growth and minimizes the amount of nutrients available to vegetation. With root growth restricted, root function becomes minimized. When there are less nutrients available to the plants, they then become more susceptible to diseases. It also decreases the amount of oxygen and water available to the vegetation. With the amount vegetation dying in the forests, there are even more fire hazards littering the forest floor. According to sierraforestlegacy.org, logging operations greatly increase the risk of fire in a forest because of the increase of surface dead fuels and because it is changing the local microclimate. With the microclimates changed, the local conditions become hotter and drier, resulting in even more fire hazards. With the unnatural fire patterns, even more carbon emissions are being released, which is now contributing to global

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