Save a Forest in Southworth, WA

Southworth Forest Update:

Lessons in Port Orchard From Canada's 2023 Wildfires

Posted June 14, 2023 by Southworth Forest

A portion of the Edwards forest in Southworth near wetlands is shown during the destruction process. (2019)

An excellent article about 2023's wildfires in Canada appeared in Politico on June 11th. It accurately reveals the hazards of climate change and wildfires due to the removal of mature forests in North America. As the writers state, "In all cases, nature knows what it is doing, and human intervention tends to make matters worse, not better."

While much attention goes to old growth forests and their impressive carbon-capturing capabilities, the younger but mature forests of today will become the old growth forests of tomorrow. Mature forests may not be hundreds or thousands of years old, but they are well on their way to becoming the old growth we need to help reverse the effects of climate change.

In some areas of North America, old growth forests are naturally destined to be swept up in wildfires. In the moister areas like the Pacific Northwest, however, mature forests are meant to reach old growth ages. They become increasingly better at resisting fires and capturing carbon as they age, their canopies reducing fuels underneath. The more mature forestland is destroyed for development or agriculture, the more daunting climate change will become.

Much of the Puget Sound lowlands was logged 60 to 70 years ago, including Port Orchard's Southworth area. The mostly cedar and fir forests that have grown since then have reached maturity in many places, and a few areas along wetlands not logged in the last century are the closest to reaching old growth status. The forest removed at 11090 SE Southworth Dr. near the ferry terminal in Port Orchard in 2019 was mature in some parts, with some particularly massive trees alongside its wetlands.

Owners Meghan and Clint Edwards planned to convert the forest on that parcel to "agricultural operations" shortly after purchasing it, reducing the forest to bare dirt without the proper permit. Their clearing included older trees within a wetlands buffer, which is the worst part of their violation. These senseless actions not only break the law but they represent a willingness by some forest owners to disregard climate effects because of mere personal preference. The minimal replacement trees required by law won't achieve mature status in most of our lifetimes.

The Politico article concludes by reinforcing this important point. "We need to both protect as much of our remaining forests as we can, but -- importantly -- we also must let them get old. New trees are no substitute for old trees and the ecosystems they nurture." Owners like Edwards in Port Orchard who purchase a forest despite wanting to own a pasture are mortgaging away our future by killing the mature forests we need to survive climate impacts.