Comments on: The Trouble With Trees http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/ideas/2012/10/the-trouble-with-trees/ How human ingenuity is changing the way we live Wed, 22 May 2013 23:01:57 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4 By: Gal Zawacki http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/ideas/2012/10/the-trouble-with-trees/comment-page-1/#comment-1235 Gal Zawacki Sat, 20 Oct 2012 16:08:54 +0000 http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/ideas/?p=3998#comment-1235 The fact is, trees are dying all around the world, and I fear the underlying cause is not climate change (although it is rapidly accelerating, and an existential threat to all species). However, the bark beetle and various other infestations, diseases and fungi being blamed for forest decline are opportunistic attacks that occur because the trees are absorbing air pollution, which compromises their immune systems. Tropospheric ozone also causes roots to shrink even before visible injury becomes apparent on foliage, making vegetation more susceptible to drought. These secondary effects have been proven in many controlled fumigation experiments at universities in conjunction with agricultural agencies internationally. Nevertheless the extent of damage is a terribly neglected and misunderstood topic, to a certain extent deliberately, because nobody wants to admit that the emissions from our industrial civilization are toxic to our source of food and oxygen - plants. So I wrote a book which is available as a free download, which has links to scientific research here: http://www.deadtrees-dyingforests.com/pillage-plunder-pollute-llc/ and maintain a blog with photos and links to current reports and studies here: http://witsendnj.blogspot.com/ I think it is critical that people understand this is not an isolated, local issue but in fact has become global and is impacting literally everyone. The fact is, trees are dying all around the world, and I fear the underlying cause is not climate change (although it is rapidly accelerating, and an existential threat to all species). However, the bark beetle and various other infestations, diseases and fungi being blamed for forest decline are opportunistic attacks that occur because the trees are absorbing air pollution, which compromises their immune systems. Tropospheric ozone also causes roots to shrink even before visible injury becomes apparent on foliage, making vegetation more susceptible to drought. These secondary effects have been proven in many controlled fumigation experiments at universities in conjunction with agricultural agencies internationally.

Nevertheless the extent of damage is a terribly neglected and misunderstood topic, to a certain extent deliberately, because nobody wants to admit that the emissions from our industrial civilization are toxic to our source of food and oxygen – plants. So I wrote a book which is available as a free download, which has links to scientific research here: http://www.deadtrees-dyingforests.com/pillage-plunder-pollute-llc/ and maintain a blog with photos and links to current reports and studies here: http://witsendnj.blogspot.com/

I think it is critical that people understand this is not an isolated, local issue but in fact has become global and is impacting literally everyone.

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