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--089e0822b100ce7cad05583daa9a Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Nature never used to need our help. Regional biodiversity needs more wild, old-process forest. Bits of fallen twigs, decaying snags, mossy embedded trunks...humus cavity nesters wild flowers. This is known. There were landmark studies that asked whether logged woodlands ever recovered their vernal herb diversities. It's important that we don"t get too cute and as naturalists start to argue that managed forests do the same as wild forest or that carbon is the dominant yardstick. We have very little wild forest and much multiple cutover forest. Anything any of us can do to replace ourselves as manager with nature will help. We are too complacent. With so little crown land and so little ecological management of it, we should be arguing for crown lands to be wild land. Nick On Sep 2, 2017 11:22 AM, "David" <dwebster@glinx.com> wrote: > Hi Paul, > Because many littles add up to a lot. And I don't buy the ideas of > moving to Mars. > Yt, DW, Kentville > > ------ Original Message ------ > From: "rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca" <rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca> > To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > Sent: 9/2/2017 9:16:08 AM > Subject: Re: Re[2]: [NatureNS] Woods walk in North Alton > > Why are you worried about CO2 Dave? > That's the staff of life that we know! > A little more will never hurt. > Enjoy the last few days of summer. > Paul > > On September 1, 2017 at 2:52 PM David <dwebster@glinx.com> wrote: > > Hi Ron, > Woodlots, as with most matters, are best managed with an open mind so > one is free to react to circumstances as they arise; unconstrained by > mental dogma. For many years I took the leave it alone approach on one > woodlot and that turned out to be a disaster; many large trees over and > hidden in a jungle of fir regrowth such that it would be foolhardy to wal= k > there without a chainsaw. > By extracting only selected trees for firewood from overstocked areas > one has the highly unusual situation of having your cake and eating it to= o; > heat with zero net carbon release (and in best situations probably negati= ve > carbon release). When trees are freed of excessive competition in an > otherwise favorable context they will often capture more carbon per year > than the two or three initial trees combined. > Much has been written about forests capturing carbon permanently if > they are left alone; nope. Forests burn and whatever dies in a forest wil= l > eventually be released as carbon. The only way to have that cake and eat = it > too is by careful thinning of overstocked stands. > And like it or not, a woodlot may require some cutting when trees blo= w > over across roads. In the North Alton lot trees are still going over whic= h > were weakened in Dec 2013 and by Arthur in 2014. > Yt, DW, Kentville > > ------ Original Message ------ > From: "John and Nhung" < nhungjohn@eastlink.ca> > To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > Sent: 8/31/2017 1:23:07 PM > Subject: RE: [NatureNS] Woods walk in North Alton > > > I find that arguments over nature vs. manicured, (unnecessarily) managed > property can happen even within family! > > > > Otherwise, our TREPA has been encouraging municipal governments to > strengthen protections for shoreline properties for some time. > Municipality of Yarmouth has had a by-law in place since 2014, limiting a= ny > developments within 40 feet of a water body to the bare minimum necessary= . > > > > I think it has had some effect, but not enough, and enforcement is a > challenge. I long for the day when we will have adequate provincial > regulations limiting what people can do to shoreline zones above the high > water mark. > > > > Guess we=E2=80=99ll need a few more blue-green algae blooms or muddy lake= s before > that happens. > > > > *From:* naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca [mailto:naturens-owner@ > chebucto.ns.ca] *On Behalf Of *Ron Wilson > *Sent:* August 31, 2017 12:52 PM > *To:* Nature NS > *Cc:* David Webster > *Subject:* Re: [NatureNS] Woods walk in North Alton > > > > David > > > > Reminds me of a gentleman who was recently looking to purchase our house > and cherished woodlot. > > > > I was walking him through the woods trails and he commented on what trees > needed to come down ( strike 1) > > Then his wife commented how they may be able to get the ride on mower up > into the woods to keep the weeds down ( strike 2) > > The on the way out he said he would be damning up the brook to create a > pond - I suggested that he may need a water course alteration permit for > such a thing and his reply was " no- you just do it - if you get caught y= ou > just get a slap on the wrist- they won't do nothing anyways" (strike 3) > > > > Fortunately another couple with a keen interest in nature are purchasing > the property. Such a relief. > > > > Ron Wilson > > Somerset NS > > > > > > On Mon, Aug 28, 2017 at 8:45 PM, David <dwebster@glinx.com> wrote: > > Dear All, Aug 28, 2017 > > I had a pleasant and unhurried walk yesterday with a friend along mos= t > of the pick and shovel roads in the North Alton woodlot. And the timing > could not have better. > > As the saying goes "Its an ill wind that blows no good". Perhaps due > to the cool summer with frequent rains, the early morning shower on Sunda= y > or the combination (or unknown causes; e.g. low temperatures have likely > have made snakes less active leading to more Froglets) those roads were > alive with small Wood Frogs (about 1 cm long) and Fleshy Fungi. > > Typically I see from one to five adult Wood Frogs there per year but > have previously never seen any young ones. And there are usually some > fleshy fungi in season but the diversity yesterday was highly exceptional= . > > I made most of these roads more than 30 years ago and have rarely bee= n > back there in the last 10 (so I sometimes don't recognize sections); tree= s > grow and disturbed soil heals so these roads may have entered an "old > growth" woods road stage with near maximum diversity. As a bonus I notice= d > a new plant Osmunda regalis; Royal Fern (drawing on memory, the two page > printout is hiding somewhere and that computer is down). > > For those who live nearby and have time to absorb and appreciate > natural magic you could do worse than visit this woodlot just after a lig= ht > rain. On average, SE is in, NW is out; a compass helps in cloudy weather. > If you get turned around follow roads to near the SE corner to find a roa= d > which leads Easterly to an adjacent lot which has