The Role of Forests in U.S. Climate Policy (Land Lines Article)

Author(s): Wayburn, Laurie A.
Publication Date: October 2009

6 pages; Inventory ID LLA091002; English


The Role of Forests in U.S. Climate Policy	959 KB

Article

Like many schoolchildren, I learned that years ago a squirrel could cross the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean never touching the ground, using our magnificent forests as an aerial highway. After massive clearing and development for agriculture, cities, and roads, those forests are now a tattered patchwork, and are nonexistent in many places. More than a squirrel’s dilemma, though, the loss and altering of America’s forests have created both an enormous challenge to climate health and an opportunity for climate policy and action.