Deforestion and Global Warming

Becoming more interested in the effects of deforestation I have chosen to research the effects of deforestation in the state I reside in. Washington State.

According to an article I discovered at www.planeetark.com. I pulled up an article on Washington State explaining how our state was having the regions worst dry spell in 24 years.( Washington state Governor Gary Locke declared an official drought, freeing up millions of dollars in emergency funds to be spent pumping water to parched areas such as vital farmlands.) Governor Locke goes on to state that the “Evergreen State” has wilted under a drought that has halved the area’s normal rainfall, threatening  its critical fruit orchards and salmon streams, and leaving some cities and towns high and dry. One of the hardest hit areas is the Yakima valley that is the nation’s top apple-growing region, and is the home to millions of acres of other water-guzzling fruit crop like pears and cherries.

The agricultural industry has been struggling for years, They now face soaring energy costs, and we have to protect their need for water this fall,” Locke told a news conference on the edge of Alder Lake, about 60 miles south of Seattle.

If we lose fruit trees this year, we lose them forever,” Locke said. Washington’s Department of Ecology is to use $5.1 million dollars in state funds to buy water from areas that have it and send to the areas that do not.

GOVERNER APPEALS FOR WATER CONSERVATION

The money will buy or lease water rights to keep rivers and streams flowing, stop farm irrigation systems from running dry, and to pump water to those of the state’s 6 million residents who are in danger of having their taps dry up. Locke appealed to the citizens of Washington State to conserve on water as “This is already the worst drought in our state since 1977 and it’s only Mach of 2001. With the water shortages increasing so quickly it is causing not only water shortages to the state but causing the cost of electricity rates to skyrocket.

Snow pack that is crucial to keeping the states hydroelectric turbines spinning during the spring and the summer is only half to 60 percent of normal. More than 30 of our rivers are showing a market low of flows affecting the flow of water flowing into the Columbia River- the states largest and most important waterway. This has happened to our state the state many of us call home and has continued to grow with the cutting of our forest thus causing the snow packed hills we depend upon to supply water to our state not to have the cover needed to allow the snow to melt when it should. We as a state are causing these problems by clear cutting many of the areas in our state, using the timber for profit. The projected profit is causing our state to collapse if we as a state do not get this problem under control.

This article was submitted by Scott Hillis 0n 3/16/2001.

By researching these issues with deforestation in Washington State and world wide nations you would think we as a country would learn from past mistakes and try and correct the damage that deforestation can cause. I believe we need to take a stand to stop the governments so called progress and turn our planet back into a positive place to live. I have observed clear cutting of the forest within the past few day’s in my neighbor hood. This shows that deforestation is still in effect. There seems to be not any measures being taken to try and repair the damage this is causing. By destroying all our resources we will be in the same situation that past cultures have faced and in the future our planet will indeed collapse as well.