Many scientists and forester in the rest of the world seem to have a distinctly different opinion of almost everything SANPark is telling us in South Africa´s newspapers and media regarding "alien" trees and fynbos.

Planted Forests

At this point in time, it can be agreed that "planted forests" are forests in which trees have been established through planting or seeding by human intervention. Planted forests are increasingly being recognized as including semi-natural forests with indigenous species and plantation forests with exotic species.

Did you know ...

a 100-year old Oak tree has the following dimensions (free standing)
height:	25 m
crown diameter:	14 m
crownvolume:	2 700 m³
stand:	160 m²
outer leaf surface area:	1 600 m²
"inner" leaf surface area:	100 000 m²
wood mass:	15 m³
dry weight:	12 000 kg
pure carbon:	6 000 kg

Physiological funktions:
water intake:	0,96 l/h
CO2-release (nightime) :	2,35 kg/h
oxygen release (daytime):	1,71 kg/h
glucose production:	1,60 kg/h
air filter/dust removal	up to 1 t/year
water evaporation:	10 m³/Jahr

Free your mind

The Pine Trees Consume Too Much Water Myth

These stone pines must have been regularly watered by Capetonians

Trees, Oxygen and Photosynthesis

The amount of oxygen a plant is producing depends most of all on the volume of water absorbed by the plant. The Light energy entering the plant splits the water into hydrogen and oxygen:

H2O + light energy ---> ½ O2 + 2H+ + 2 electrons

It is therefore a safe assumption that plants like fynbos and Afro-montane trees, who use up less water, don't produce much oxygen. In the long Cape winter nights the oxygen/CO2 balance is most likely negative.

Water evaporation

Tree leaves block sunlight. Everybody who ever hiked in full summer sun on Silvermine or under the shady trees of Constantia Nek knows how much less heat is reaching the ground in the forests. The temperature of sand under a tree can be as much as 20°C cooler than sand surface in full sunlight. One can therefore assume the much higher soil temperatures in vast, mostly sandy, fynbos areas evaporate lots of fresh rain water into the air.

Water depletions from soil evaporation : "Soil evaporation is maximized if there is a shallow groundwater table, a hot and dry climate, bare surface exposed to sunlight and wind, and a uniform fine-grained soil....Removal of surficial detritus and leaf litter may also affect soil evaporation. These materials form mulch, which can dramatic-ally reduce the soil evaporation." John C. Stormont and Julie Coonrod Department of Civil Engineering, The University of New Mexico

On the other hand forests protect water resources: Through its foliage, the craggy bark, and the abundant litter, trees and forests decrease the speed of water dispersion and favour slow but total infiltration of rain water; it is also to be noted the capacity of trees especially in dry areas to retain other precipitations such as mist that then can be collected and stored for use. The combination of these elements makes it possible that in apparently very arid environments an important amount of water is stored in the ground which can support the survival of trees and forests in often adverse conditions. Reducing the erosion, the forests also provide cleaning processes of natural water.....

The environmental functions of trees and forests under dry conditions relate to a number of aspects including, among others, the well-being of humans and animals, the productivity of cropland, the overall protection of land and water resources and the conservation of biological diversity.

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The Pine Trees are a Fire Hazard Myth

The FIRE 2006 Camps Bay Trees didn't catch fire....but everything else was burned to the ground!

Actually, its more the opposite. Most of the Pinus radiata of Tokai and Cecilia forests are up to 40 years old. In other words they never burned in 40 years. How could they survive since "Pine plantations embedded in fire-prone environments, such as the fynbos ecosystems, are subjected to extreme wildfire risk..." Neels De Ronde, SILVA Forest Services

Fynbos and Fire

TMNP`s cleverly invented term "Fire Adapted Fynbos" is an insidious way to say that fynbos needs fire to re sprout. Many fynbos shrubs, with their fine, dry leaves packed with highly flammable tannins, fall into the fire-prone category. They must burn every 6 to 35 years to rejuvenate and stay healthy. " Without fire, Fynbos becomes senescent and Forest and Thicket elements begin invading."

From a South African National Biodiversity Institute, South Africa web site: "Fynbos must burn, but fires in the wrong season (such as in spring, instead of late summer) or too frequently (so that plants do not have time to set seed) eliminate species. Several factors influence fire dynamics in Fynbos - global warming, grazing practices and fire management (ignition events, size of burns), but their relative importance and interactions are poorly understood." and further down " Fynbos has a low animal biomass " which brings us to the :

The Pine Forests are a Biological Desert Myth

Everybody who walked in Cecilia or Tokai forest and has ears to hear and eyes to see will have heard the singing birds, the calls of sparrow hawks and owls and may have even seen a genet.

"While it is true that radiata pine forests, like most other agricultural crops, are mono cultures (single species), many species of wildlife have adapted readily to living in or adjacent to pine forests.

Surveys in State forests' Tumut Management Area have shown that of the 214 species of birds recorded in State forests, 110 are sighted in pine plantations and nine of the 31 native mammals recorded are also found in pine plantations.In State forests' Bathurst Management Area, about 50 per cent of all bird species recorded in State forests were within or closely associated with pine plantations; 12 species of birds in the area have been observed nesting within plantations.

Animal life in plantations is often highly visible but lacks diversity. In particular, those animals that are dependent on the foliage of native vegetation for food or hollow branch stubs for nesting or roosting are usually in low numbers."

We are against clear felling, not because it looks ugly like some try to rumour, but because it makes no sense, neither economically nor environmentally. The rest of the civilised world ( as does the FAO ) uses a different approach to harvest mature trees in forests.

What now remains of the formerly rich land is like the skeleton of a sick man.... Formerly, many of the mountains were arable. The plains that were full of rich soil are now marshes. Hills that were once covered with forests and produced abundant pasture now produce only food for bees. Once the land was enriched by yearly rains, which were not lost, as they are now, by flowing from the bare land into the sea. The soil was deep, it absorbed and kept the water in loamy soil, and the water that soaked into the hills fed springs and running streams everywhere. Plato (427-347 BCE)

Ever donated money to the WWF ?

Well, WWF-South Africa supports eradication of the forests, because trees "soak up precious water" : " However, although they might be green and leafy, the pine trees and other exotic trees like eucalyptus are not part of South Africa's natural wealth. Rather, they are responsible for the demise of numerous plant and animal species which are indigenous to South Africa. WWF works to support the health and integrity of our natural systems - this means that exotic and invasive plant vegetation must be cleared. Not only do these plantations (they are not forests) cause the demise of numerous species, they also soak up precious freshwater and pose a heightened fire risk for the people on the Cape Peninsula." Thérèse Brinkcate
Ecoregions Programme Manager, WWF South Africa

What trees can do for our health :

1000ha of 500,000 alien trees can remove up to 35,000 tons of dust and air pollutants per year. These same trees produce also up to 6,250 tons of oxygen and remove up to 7500 tons of CO2 per year. A person uses less than one pound of oxygen per day, or about 278 pounds per year. So every ha of forest produces enough oxygen for about 44 people.

The amount of oxygen a tree is producing during its lifetime depends on the amount of carbon dioxide it is converting into wood via photosynthesis. In other words a slow growing brush contributes very little to a healthy environment.

Paris Parks

In Chicago, scientists found that each year trees removed some 234 tons (212 metric tons) of particulates, 98 tons (89 metric tons) of nitrogen dioxide, 93 tons (84 metric tons) of sulphur dioxide, and 17 tons (15 metric tons) of carbon monoxide.

FORESTS, AIR & WATER

Trees are nature’s air conditioners. An acre of trees can grow about 2 tons of wood per year. This same acre removes 3 tons of carbon dioxide and produces 2 l/2 tons of oxygen per year. A person uses less than one pound of oxygen per day, or about 278 pounds per year. So every acre of forest produces enough oxygen for 18 people. At the same time, an acre of forest removes 13 tons of dust from the surrounding environment and releases 8,000 gallons of water into the air. This results in forest areas being cooler and cleaner than surrounding areas.

The Benefits of an Urban Forest

A forest is reducing water pollution: Tree leaves and branches catch rainfall during storms. The water drips slowly from the tree, reducing the rate that storm water reaches the ground. This decreases peak volumes of storm water that can overwhelm sewer systems.

Water also evaporates from leaf surfaces, going back into the atmosphere and increases rainfalls rather than going down the drain.

Trees also help improve the quality of ground water. The trees divert captured rainwater into the soil, where bacteria and other microorganisms filtered out impurities. This bio-filtration can dramatically reduce the sediment, pollutants and organic matter that reach streams, sewage systems and eventually the Bay.

Forest Management May Mitigate Global Warming

The types of tree species in the forest, their growth rate and the age of the forest can all alter carbon uptake.

More Facts About Trees

Trees keep our air supply fresh by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen. The fine roots of trees release about 1 ton of carbon per ha/year into the forest soil (Perruchoud et al. 1999).

Trees and the Environment

In one year, an acre of trees can absorb as much carbon as is produced by a car driven up to 8700 miles.
Trees lower air temperature by evaporating water in their leaves.
A tree does not reach its most productive stage of carbon storage for about 10 years.
Trees cut down noise pollution by acting as sound barriers.
Tree roots stabilize the soil and prevent erosion.
Trees provide food and shelter for wildlife.

The amount of oxygen produced by an acre of trees per year equals the amount consumed by 18 people annually. One tree produces nearly 260 pounds of oxygen each year.
One acre of trees removes up to 2.6 tons of carbon dioxide each year.
Shade trees can make buildings up to 20 degrees cooler in the summer.
Trees lower air temperature by evaporating water in their leaves.

Tree Biology

Trees are the longest living organisms on earth.
Trees and other plants make their food through a process called photosynthesis.
The inside of a tree is made of lignin, phloem, cambium, and xylem.
The xylem of a tree carries water from the roots to the leaves.