Heeding the message from Rogue warming
Guest Column by Alan Journet, Medford Mail Tribune / Ashland Daily Tidings, August 12, 2018
As residents of the Rogue Valley, we can ignore the data and our own eyes as some argue we should. Alternatively, we can be a little smarter; we can acknowledge what is happening and then both prepare for the future and commit to reducing the problem.
I’m a Rogue Valley newcomer of some seven years and a local forest owner, but I can see the same trends that others must see: our Douglas firs are dying at an alarming rate. Though great for our winter wood store, it’s a disturbing harbinger of what is likely to come. Exactly how the warming trend will influence our native tree species is unclear, but analyses suggest that several commercially and ecologically important species will soon be seriously compromised (http://charcoal.cnre.vt.edu/climate/species/).
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