Thread by @Jason_L_Newton

Who is really in charge when it comes to #climatechange? Maybe its not us, maybe it’s #trees. An opinion thread on #globalwarming #envhist #forestry #climatecrisis #greennewdeal #actonclimate #anthropocene 1/16

Critics of the term Anthropocene argue that it doesn't capture what caused recent climatological, geological, & ecological changes. This criticism is multifaceted but one aspect is that humans were not alone in causing these changes. 2/16

Humans worked with non-humans. Additionally, we will not be able to fix these problems on our own. #Trees have been active agents of the largest historical changes in American history. Trees do something we can't, even with our tech: Capture a lot of carbon cheaply. 2/16

Example: Native Americans suppressed tree growth via fire to plant crops & encourage game. This was a constant struggle against the forest which attempted to regain control of the land. When colonist wiped out 90% of Native Americans, trees took advantage & regrew. 3/16

They sucked carbon out of the atmosphere contributing to global cooling. This global cooling is called the Little Ice Age & had profound affects in Europe & America causing disease & famine. (NA land use 1500 vs 1600). 4/16 sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

Trees drove colonization. The eastern white pine was prized by the British for masts & spars for ships. Without mature trees, British colonization would have slowed. White pines were so crucial that the rebels on Bunker Hill flew a flag depicting the white pine. 5/16

Later, forests struggled against the ax of the American farmer. The forests were so fecund that in parts of the Northeast farmers found it too labor intensive to keep their sun-filled fields free of feral regrowth. 6/16

"The seeds of natural rebirth … are so strong" one Adirondack resident wrote, "that we have to wage a continual holding action to keep our basic seventy-acre clearing from reverting to wilderness." 7/16

By the 1850s, Northeastern farmers abandoned the land. They were pulled west by opportunity but also pushed out by the forest. Just as with the dying of the Indigenous, the trees took the advantage & regrew. 8/16

Vermont was as much as 80% deforested in the 19th century. Now millions drive across New England annually in the fall to see the wonderful colors of regrown, succession hardwoods. 9/16

As logging tech improved post-1850, trees in the south & west began losing the fight. At this time, however, Americans began to realize that trees were vital partners. Thoreau, Marsh, Muir, Pinchot, Roosevelt etc. argued that denuded landscapes harmed people. 10/16

Americans, including newly empowered foresters, conserved and preserved vast stretches of forest. When unable to fight via regrowth, trees' charisma & utility became their weapons. 11/16

Humans began to work FOR trees. The Dust Bowl brought attention to trees' importance in soil conservation. Between 1933 & 1942 3 mill CCC workers planted some 2.3 billion trees. Who was the boss here? 12/16

Now it has become clear that these giant agents of historical change might save us from climate change. A study in Science has shown that planting a trillion trees would absorb 2/3 of the CO2 emitted since industrialization thereby cooling the planet 13/16 science.sciencemag.org/content/365/64…

Trees mitigate the effects of global warming too. The urban poor will be disproportionately affected by warmer temperatures because treeless cities absorb & retain heat. This negatively affects people's health. Planting trees make cities cooler 14/16 n.pr/2ZfeyTW

How to repay trees? First we can quantify their importance and disseminate the info. @CornellHort did this last year by posting signs on trees in the quad. Maybe some of this money could go towards maintaining/growing trees. 15/16

Humans have worked against, for, & with trees to create historical and climate change. Going forward, trees will mitigate climate change, with or without human help. Trees will hold & bury our sins, perhaps giving us absolution. 16/16

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