Re: The one book that every serious ecologist needs to read!!!-Reply

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It's been my understanding, although this is far from my field of study, that
the acidification of the Black Forest turned out to be the result not of acid
rain, but of the historic practice of German foresters of removing nearly
all fallen trunks from the forest. Base cations were thus permanently
removed from the mineral cycle, acidifying the soil over time. As far as I
know, this practice has been corrected and the health of the Black Forest
is now improving. 
Can anyone bring me up to date?

>>> Heinz Hilbrecht <Hilbrecht@erdw.ethz.ch> 05/21/97 05:22am >>>
In the recent posting by on the book
>Deeper Ecology: Essays on Ecological Spirituality
we read:

>     The accounts of air pollution are endless, with some of the most
>striking to my mind being the Black Forest in Germany, which is nearly
>gone, from acid rain caused by the rapid advancement of modern
>machinery in that country.

I have not read the book and can not argue about its scientific
fundaments.
It is clear, however, that the Black Forest in Germany is not gone. I live
there and I enjoy my weekends in the forests. The scientific discussion
and
information to the public should be fueled with true information. We (the
scientists) loose a lot of credit in the public if people realise that we
spread alarm without reason, and based on unverified information

The Black Forst is not gone, but there are serious problems. The trees
suffer mainly along main roads due to emissions from cars. Other modern
machinery is not much of a problem in Germany, after introduction of a
series of laws reducing emisssions from industrial activity and heating.
The debate on forests in Germany has not been fueled with alarms but
with
facts and education. This enabled many people to observe their local
environment, to recognise unhealthy trees (which is not always easy),
and
disturbed ecosystems. It is still not a paradise but there is a lot of
pressure on decision-makers to care for ecologic problems.

Heinz Hilbrecht



Address:

Dr. Heinz Hilbrecht
Geological Institute
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