Business Owner

 

My name is Frank Johnson and my business is looking to expand into the rural town of Nakka Nakka and begin clearing some space for farming in a large patch of bushland to get wood for our major timber furniture company. We have obviously come across many protesters who think this is a terrible idea, causing major damage to the environment of the area. However, we believe that if we exercise sustainable practices that this can be a valuable endeavour for the town and leave a minimal impact on the environment in the long term. We need to convince environmental groups that we are using sustainable techniques when clearing the land that will allow the area to rejuvenate in the future. We need to also ensure the town people that this will benefit the community by creating jobs and boosting the local economy. We need to write a letter describing the positives of this process rather than the doom and gloom picture people assume it to be.

Here are some methods that can be utilized in order to remove trees for producing furniture: 

 

Selective cutting

  •  Intermediate age or mature trees cut singly or in small groups
  • Growth of young trees encouraged by decreased crowding
  • Soil is protected from erosion
  •  Not as profitable as other techniques (eg. Clear felling)
  • High grading

Shelterwood cutting

  •  Removes all mature trees over 2-3 year periods
  •  Leaves enough mature trees for seeding
  • Allows best trees to be left to produce seeds
  • Not as profitable as clear felling

 

Seed-tree cutting


  •  Harvest nearly all the trees in one cutting
  •  Leave a few seed trees
  •  Seed trees harvested later

 

Clear felling

  • Remove all trees in a single cutting
  • Trees may be cut in a strip or in a series of patches (allows regeneration)
  • Huge areas may be felled
  • Efficient
  • Loss of forest ecosystems
  • Detrimental effects on indigenous people
  •  Decreased species diversity
  •  Changed hydrology – flooding, erosion and siltation
  •  Decreased organic carbon and nutrients in soil
  • Increased weeds

 

Aside from ensuring we use sustainable practices, the townspeople need to be aware of the other benefits our company settling in Nakka Nakka will entail such as creating jobs and boosting economic growth.

Using the Google search bar found on the right hand side of the page, further research these techniques of deforestation and choose which one/ones will convince the people in environmental groups and the surrounding community that the deforestation of the forest in Nakka Nakka can be beneficial and sustainable.

If we can convince the people involved that this will not degrade the environment in the long term and also be good for the township, we can expand our furniture company, put more people in jobs and make a profit as well!

 

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