Tree Speech

According to the LA Times, Hurricane Katrina

destroyed an estimated 320 million trees in Mississippi and Louisiana, an unprecedented loss of forest land that will reshape the region for generations

Ironically, the dead trees will exacerbate global warming because they

will ultimately release about 367 million tons of carbon dioxide as they decompose — about the same amount that is absorbed by all U.S. forests in a year

Predictably, native trees withstood the onslaught far better than the species favored by tree farmers.

Only about 10% of stands of loblolly pine, favored by commercial timber growers, survived the assault. In contrast, more than 90% of native longleaf pine stands escaped damage. But the acreage of longleaf pine is only about 2% of what it was a century ago

They are being replace by invasive species such as Chinese Tallows, which are on the “hit list” in San Antonio.

the deforested land, once covered with native species such as longleaf pine, oak and cypress, is being taken over by invasive species that are changing the ecology of the area. One of the most prolific, the Chinese tallow, oozes a milky, toxic sap that creates an inhospitable environment for insects, birds and small animals

The folks over at the “Responsible Growth Alliance” (who I know primarily from their thinly-veiled threat to sue me) like to tout their love of trees…

…landscape contractors in San Antonio plant more than 100,000 trees per year. The majority of those contractors are hired by developers, homebuilders and contractors.

This claim is often recited by developers and their lobbyists when asking City Council to relax tree protection rules. I’ve even seen them say they plant more trees than they destroy…

Much has been made over the removal of trees during development. The fact is that more good hardwood trees are usually planted than removed.

One of the funniest people in Texas, and the world, is John Kelso. I’ll leave you with his words about a developer building condos near Barton Springs…

Never trust anyone who brags about planting trees. If you weren’t messing with the trees to start with, you wouldn’t need to plant more.