In his book, The Power of Trees, well-known forester Peter Wohlleben, sets out his belief that “The future of forests and future of humanity are in inextricably entwined.” He sees great hope in this fact because trees have been able to adapt to past changes in climate and are our best option for removing greenhouses gases from the atmosphere. Combining his personal experiences and scientific knowledge, Wohlleben describes how trees learn and the reasons why forestry practices fail. He ends with a call to protect our forests by allowing natural reforestation to take its course.
Wohlleben believes that trees create communities and that they communicate, cooperate, and even support each other. Trees react to changes in their environment, learn, and hand down their wisdom to future generations. The reactions affect the environment around them and sometimes far off places and the author gives examples of how forests aid in such phenomena as regulating temperature, maintaining biodiversity, and sequestering carbon dioxide.
But the forest is fragile, warns Wohlleben, and forestry professionals use management practices that threaten the forests. He gives specific examples of good intentions gone wrong such as the Home Improvement store that promised to plant one million trees. He questions the idea of using wood being eco-friendly and shows that the true cost of using wood is very high when considering the effects on the cooling processes and water cycle. One of his most compelling statements is that that “running out of toilet paper appears to be a much scarier prospect than running out of forest”.
In the final section of the book, Wohlleben outlines his ideas for dealing with climate change and the role of forests. He points out that since the planting schemes that have been used have been disasters, the best way to regenerate forests is to step back and let them grow without interference from people. It is a slow process and we might have to change our perspective and accept “wilderness” until recognizable forests appear.
Wohlleben use of personal anecdotes and scientific knowledge make his text very understandable to all readers. He writes in a clear style that conveys his deep reverence and love for nature that can serve to inspire readers to develop a new view point of forests and their care. The Power of Trees is especially timely in the current handling of climate change and offers a significant input into the environmental decision making process.
To buy The Power of Trees from Amazon, click here.
Karen