414 – North American Tree News

–North America: 1) Pine beetle as an Anti-biotic resource
–British Columbia: 2) 25% of Cathedral Grove attack backed by BC government investments, 3) Protesters shut down logging of Cathedral grove!
–Canada: 4) Police attack indigenous children & elderly, 5) Gov creates Climate Change and Energy portfolio, 6) Deforestation books printed on trees,

Articles:

North America:

1) Local pine beetle experts have welcomed a study that suggests pine beetles devastating large tracts of North American forests could be a treasure trove of new antibiotics. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Harvard Medical School have isolated a new antibiotic compound in the bacterium associated with the southern pine beetle, a close relative of B.C.’s mountain pine beetle. The finding could yield “intriguing possibilities” in the medical field, said Dezene Huber, Canada research chair in forest entomology at the University of Northern B.C. “The idea is if we start looking at some of the microbes associated with insects, it could lead to a new drug that can selectively kill fungi or bacteria,” said Huber. “That’s a fantastic thing. It could potentially benefit people.” The pine beetle is associated with a beneficial fungus that burrows underneath tree bark and provides food for the beetle’s larvae. But mites attached to the beetle’s shell bring along their own fungus that competes with the beetle fungus for nutrients in trees, much like a “weed in the beetle’s fungal garden,” said Cameron Currie, evolutionary biologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and co-author of the study, published Thursday in the journal Science. Coming to the rescue is a bacterium also carried by beetles that wields an antibiotic compound called mycangimycin, which protects the insect’s fungus by inhibiting the growth of the enemy fungus. It is still unknown whether the antibiotic compound has any application for human medicine, said Currie, an Edmonton native.But the implications of a new possible source of antibiotics are promising, especially at a time when soil-sourced antibiotic compounds are being exhausted and resistance to existing antibiotics is rapidly increasing. The southern pine beetle is the third type of insect — after leaf-cutting ants and European beewolf wasps — to be associated with antibiotic-wielding bacteria. The potential health boon might come as little consolation to B.C. communities ravaged by the marauding mountain pine beetle, which devoured 13.5 million hectares of pine stands last year. But the fact that the pests might be a medical wonder is merely “biological reality,” said Huber. “If it has a bacteria that produces antibiotics that might be useful, then great,” he said. per http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=6e7c5ea3-4c94-4fdc-b1ba-cfbbe2399a82

British Columbia:

2) Cathedral Grove is under attack again, this time by a company that the BC government owns 25% of through a numbered company in Manitoba. Does the public know that the same government responsible for protecting this unique old growth forest is logging a provincial park? The BC government is the largest single investor in Island Timberlands, since bcIMC bought 25% of all shares for Island Timberlands in 2005, when the logging company was first established by Brookfield Asset Management Inc. However, Brookfield is listed under the heading of Real Estate on the bcIMC website not as Forestry. The investment is being made through a numbered company based in Manitoba. In 2005 Island Timberlands was created with private land holdings that had previously been publicly owned as part of Tree Farm License #44. Despite the fact that Madam Justice Lynn Smith of the BC Supreme Court in Hupacasath First Nation v. British Columbia (Minister of Forests) found that the Province had a duty to meaningfully consult the Hupacasath about their claimed rights and concerns in regard to 70,000 hectares of private timberlands within their ancestral territory before deciding whether, at the request of then-owner Weyerhaeuser, to remove those lands from Tree Forest License 44 (TFL 44) The old growth forest that is being logged by Island Timberlands is separated from the main trailed park by several meandering canals of the Cameron River. Due to the steep slopes to the south, this leaves little room for the 300-meter buffer the logging company claims they will be leaving between their clear-cut and the park boundary. A wind-assessment conducted for BC Parks states: “…the sheltering effects of the stands to the south and west should be maintained. This could be accomplished by acquisition of adjacent lands as noted in the park Master Plan.” This same forest has been considered for purchase by The Nature Trust of British Columbia. In the past week there has been a public outcry that reflects the local, national, and international passion for the Old Growth forest of Cathedral Grove. The locally elected representative for this riding has tried to raise public concerns. MLA Fraser explained “I couldn’t question the government directly because they have cancelled the fall session of the legislature. So, I went into the offices for the Minister of Environment and the Minister of Transportation but they weren’t there.” Island Lens #110

3) PORT ALBERNI — Island Timberlands has put plans on hold to log 7,500 cubic metres of old-growth forest near the border of Cathedral Grove park. The forestry firm says, however, there are no guarantees the area won’t be harvested in the future. Protesters concerned about the logging of the old-growth forest threatened to interfere with the harvesting and had held two protests, one at Cathedral Grove park last weekend and another outside the company office in Nanoose. Protesters representing several groups, including the Friends of Cathedral Grove, announced they would use non-violent means to protest and slow down the harvesting. Timberlands spokeswoman Makenzie Leine confirmed the planned harvesting of the section of old-growth timber is on hold. “We are not going to be harvesting it right now, but the area is prepared if we do harvest in the future,” Leine said. She added the decision to hold off on the logging is not related to the protests, but instead is a reaction to market volatility. “We will log some time in the future when the markets improve,” Leine said. Trees that have been felled are only those that needed to be cut to construct a road into the area, she said. While environmentalists are relieved the harvesting is on hold, they are calling on the provincial government to step in with a firm strategy to protect the old growth forest remaining in the province. Annette Tanner of the Western Canada Wilderness Committee wants to meet with representatives from Island Timberlands to forward talks with the aim of preserving some of the old growth stands the company owns. Those opposed to the logging say Cathedral Grove boasts some of the largest trees remaining on Vancouver Island, habitat for Roosevelt elk and other rare species, and that logging in the area leaves trees vulnerable to blowdown and erosion. Tanner agrees with the sentiments of Alberni/Qualicum MLA Scott Fraser, who recently said the provincial government must step in and enact legislation that protects old growth forest in B.C. http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/capital_van_isl/story.html?id=6ace1e2d-8a75-4abf-90ab-aae1f8667757

Canada:

4) Quebec police fired teargas or some kind of irritant at children and attacked elderly demonstrators when they cleared an aboriginal blockade on Highway 117 north of Maniwaki, Barrière Lake Algonquins said yesterday. The Sûreté du Québec charged nine people, including two juveniles, with mischief yesterday after officers cleared a pile of logs from the highway that links the Outaouais to the Abitibi region. Police released the accused on condition that they keep the peace. Sgt. Melanie Larouche said police fired canisters containing a chemical irritant, not teargas at the crowd. She said paramedics determined afterwards that no one was injured. The blockade began at 6:30 a.m. and police began removing the protesters and barricade from the highway at about 4 p.m. Michel Thusky, a spokes-man for the Barrière Lake Algonquins, said police fired canisters into the crowd of 74 adults and about 40 children after reporters left the blockade. The band said the police roughed up a 59-year-old woman when they removed protesters and an Algonquin man in his 20s struck by a canister was treated in hospital for neck burns yesterday. Martin Lukacs, a volunteer who works for the band, said children were on the highway because the blockade was a community event and the Algonquins did not expect a violent confrontation. He said the police struck while the children were eating. The Algonquins of Barrière Lake want the Indian and Northern Affairs Department to recognize their traditional council and chief and a federal-provincial treaty that would give them a share of natural resource profits on their land. The unemployment rate in the community of 650 people, 300 kilometres north of Ottawa, is about 90 per cent. In 1991, the Barrière Lake Algonquins signed an agreement with Canada and Quebec to sustainably develop its 10,000-square-kilometre territory. Since 1996, the federal government has recognized a minority group and chief that oppose the agreement. http://greninja.livejournal.com/114637.html

5) The Trust welcomes the creation of the Climate Change and Energy portfolio – this new department should guarantee greater focus of action across all government departments, which will be particularly important when the Climate Change Bill receives Royal Assent and the commitments held within it become legally binding. For too long defra was a lone voice in championing actions to mitigate and adapt to climate change. We hope that in creating this new Department, Government does not become distracted from the vital need to adapt to climate change. Policy must offer both people and wildlife the best opportunities to adapt and where necessary move to more suitable conditions. Trees and woodland are crucial in an adaptation strategy as they provide habitat, support flood alleviation, and improve air and water quality. Let’s hope that these reorganisations allow Government to play their vital role in delivering a sustainable future for all of us. http://wtcampaigns.wordpress.com/2008/10/10/a-new-way-of-governing-prime-minister-reshuffles-his-pack/

6) I noticed something rather perplexing the other day, while I was in a local library. There’s an entire section of books on Deforestation. I kind of figured that there was going to be, but a little voice inside my head said, ‘Hey, I wonder if these are printed on recycled paper.’ Sure enough, I spent about an hour and a half looking through all of these books, and only about 40% of them were printed on recycled paper. I sat there, staring at these massive stacks of tomes, at a loss. I was undeniable baffled. So, why the hell are there so many books exclaiming that we need to save our forests, when the publishers don’t think about putting them on recycled paper. The freaking logging industry continues to cut down over 290,000 hectares of forest in Quebec, 185,000 hectares in Ontario and 67,000 hectares of forest in Alberta annually. And paper consumption in Canada has doubled over the last 20 years, to about 20, 000 pages per person a year. http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2006/11/10/tech-paperless.html OK, so here’s where I stand on this. I’m kind of girl that loves camping, bonfires, hiking, and all that outdoors jazz. In fact, my most memorable camping trip was to Algonquin National Park in Northern Ontario. I saw two black bears, moose, deer, and lovely little chipmunks that liked to steal my cookies. But I’m losing myself. I love the outdoors, the smell of the trees, feeling the dew on your face when you wake up to a crisp morning in the middle of the forest. I’m in my element when I’m hundreds of kilometers away from civilization. So you can imagine the disdain I may have for these publishers who continue to print on non-recycled paper. http://deathbyspelling.wordpress.com/2008/10/03/canadian-deforestation-and-the-irony-of-it/

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