Loss of Oaks More Serious Than It Seems

The removal of 1,800 oak trees from Sunshine Canyon is an environmental catastrophe, not unlike the continual destruction wrought upon the rain forests.

Perhaps it is yet hard for people here to grasp how the destruction of forests in other countries affects them. Does the rain forest really contribute something like a quarter of the global oxygen supply to all of us? Does it really affect the climate?

The contribution of 1,800 oak trees to our immediate environment may be easier to grasp. While we still do not fully understand the interrelationship of all life, we do know that a good sized oak on a warm day emits about 150 gallons of water, hence that lovely, cool air beneath a grove of oaks or even in the shade of one.

One hundred fifty gallons times 1,800 oak trees equals 270,000 gallons of water returned to the atmosphere daily. Multiply this by the days in a year and you have 98,550,000 gallons of water. My adding machine cannot go any higher but just try to imagine the lifetime contribution of that grove of lovely oaks to our local environment.

Now consider how many times this kind of environmental disaster occurs, how many counties, states, countries and continents allow and even encourage it, how many individuals and private corporations do it illegally--and imagine, if you will, how long we can possibly have a sustainable future.

The “environmental movement” is not the luxury of rich countries. It is our only hope for world survival.

CORINA ROBERTS

Simi Valley