The best way to preserve forests? Use trees.

By Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-ARK)
The Hill
March 15, 2019
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US East

Regardless of your political ideology …we can agree on one thing: …the more public and private land we can dedicate to sustainable growing trees, the better our environment will be. Conversations surrounding forest management can quickly turn combative, as conservationists advocate for active forest management, but some environmentalists push for a hands-off approach. The solution to this impasse is simple, albeit counterintuitive. If we want more trees, we should all be using more products made from trees. The key to keeping forests healthy and resilient is strong demand for forest products – coupled with a commitment to replant more trees than we harvest. It’s Economics 101. Additional demand for wood building materials, paper and bioenergy raises the value landowners receive from keeping their land as managed forests. If you are a private landowner growing trees, and you are making money when you sell those trees, you’ll keep planting more trees.

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