By Don Stump, District Forester IDNR

That was then. The pendulum has swung far to the left as many joined the cause of saving Mother Earth. But not just Mother Earth. They have to save the baby seals, the snail darter, the spotted owl, the rain forest, the old growth forests, the whales, the sharks, the ozone, the condor, the wetlands, etc., etc.

The environmental extremists have even convinced legislatures and mass media that it is better for people to lose jobs than to cut trees (Note: Not all environmentalists are extremists), One legislator was erroneously convinced that at the rate we are cutting trees, they will be gone by 1995.

Pay close attention to the cartoons your children or grandchildren watch in the afternoon and on Saturdays. Cereal commercials show cut-over forests and promise kids that they will plant a tree to correct the devastation if they buy the cereal. Cartoon characters like baby Bugs Bunny are chasing loggers and sawmillers through the woods to prevent them from cutting trees.

This list can go on and on and we ask ourselves why our young People think it is bad to cut trees and that the forest should be saved.

Teachers have mountains of materials about saving the forests, wildlife, and preserving nature. It is a very easy concept to teach. We as foresters, the timber industry and woodland owners have not provided enough information and teaching tools to enable educators to explain management concepts.

Think of the changes in terminology that have taken place. We no longer have jungles, we have rain forests. The word jungle has a threatening connotation. Thoughts of Jungle Jim slashing his way through the undergrowth with a machete only to meet up with a lion or giant lizard can be conjured up in your mind. It is not a nice place to visit. However, a rain forest is pictured as pristine, a virtual garden of Eden. Harvesting is considered to be sinful, a cause of global warming. Wait! That has been proven false. OK, then it leads to the destruction of medicinal plants not yet discovered. You see, the burden of proof is always placed on us. We are guilty until we prove our innocence.

Not convinced? Think of a swamp. Again, a threatening place to visit. Full of insects, snakes, alligators and the like. However, as wetlands they are totally different. Teaming with exotic flora and fauna. All living in perfect harmony.

Are we as a group any better? We have instituted our own terminology. Consider the fact that we don't clearcut. We prepare a site for natural regeneration.

We used to have timber technicians. Now we have resource specialists. Consultant foresters used to do timber stand improvement. Now they perform forest improvement. We feel that we have to be discreet in what we are doing. But there is nothing discreet about a mature tree falling to the ground. There is nothing discreet about a skidder moving through the woods. We need to stop being so defensive about what we do and care about.

We are managing timber, utilizing a resource given to us with a directive of dominion, providing for the demands and needs of the consumer and doing it in a professional manner. We are good at what we do. We are not haphazardly making decisions. We are more like the stereotyped woman shopper versus the stereotyped man shopper when we are in the forest. The environmental cult members portray us as men shoppers: he goes in, gets it, and gets out. But we are more like the women shoppers we go in, compare, take a close look at everything, go from tree to tree and back to the same tree again to make sure we are making a wise decision. We view the tree from every angle, and take our time. Since we enjoy the experience so much, we want to be able to come back to the same woods again and again and again.

In view of all that has been going on the last 20 to 30 years, t feel that the pendulum will swing back into place. Although the radical environmental groups are reacting with their hearts instead of their heads, they will calm down after they have convinced governments to discontinue logging. This will also include private lands. They will use deficit logging on government land and endangered species on private land for their argument.

Recently they were willing to shut down a farm in California with no regard to the landowner's financial obligation to pay taxes and upkeep because an "endangered" Kangaroo rat was found on the farm. In the end it will come to the point that they will not be able to afford the price of the wood products that they hypocritically used to combat the timber industry. Recently a sequel to the Earth Summit meeting in Rio was held in Louisville, KY. The main thrust of the conference was to deal with "sustainable development" - meeting the needs of today,' while insuring that the needs of the future will also be met. Is this a sign that the pendulum may be swinging back or at least reached its highest arc? There are still problems. West Vaco (a forest products company) had an exhibit at the conference and it was reported that they were out of place at an environmental gathering. However, this was apparently not the case with the exhibitors from NORML (National Organization for Reformed Marijuana Laws).

We will continue to use trees. The economic outlook for the private woodland owner and the industry is good. There is no way that even the most devoted, dedicated, tree hugger will go without his wood products. We have been using wood for thousands of years. Substitutes have been developed, mainly with finite resources. In the end they will come to the realization that the use of wood is the best thing going.

The forests will be renewed according to God's plan. The red oak will take two years to develop its acorn, drop in the fall and sprout in the spring. The white oak will develop its acorn in one season, drop in the fall and sprout right away. The tulip tree seeds will rest on the forest floor for 7 to 10 years, waiting for soil disturbance and sunlight. And we, with this understanding, will continue to be the stewards of the woodland resource, assisting nature for the benefit of all.