Celebrating Earth and Its Nature: Picnic For The Planet 2012

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - My Handmade Designs on ARTFIRE and in the SHOPPING MALL by PAYVMENT on FACEBOOK

PICNIC FOR THE PLANET??

Now what does that mean??

The Nature Conservancy has an Earth Day Campaign this year (2012):  "Picnic For the Planet 2012" -- encouraging everyone to enjoy Nature by having a Picnic this Earth Day.

But "Picnic For The Planet" means, as I understand it -- a lot more than having a Picnic out in Nature on Earth Day.

From one of their emails about "Picnic for the Planet 2012", I got this link:

http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/habitats/riverslakes/explore/balancing-between-food-water-and-nature.xml?e.nature 

The Key Phrase here is:

"Balancing Between Food Water and Nature".

I thought it was kind of funny -- and kind of great -- that it was about a place I have occasionally frequented, traveled through and written comment letters about:  Keeping the Santa Clara River of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties in Southern CA a Free-Flowing River.

Actually, where I live now - in the Eastern Antelope Valley of Southern California - I live a little bit east of the eastern end of the Santa Clara River Watershed - as pictured in this photo, which I found on Wikipedia:

SANTA CLARA RIVER WATERSHED, SOUTHERN CA

I live some miles east of Palmdale in the Map.

But long before I lived in the Antelope Valley, I use to roam the more rural areas of Southern California for several reasons:

1. To do my Landscape Photography

2. Find remote, rural, open spaces with a variety of Nature for Walking and the Joy of it!

3. Buy Local Fresh Healthy Produce

--- and the Santa Clara River Watershed is one of the places I use to go to.

I do believe there were times when I would travel practically the whole length of it from Canyon Country into Ventura County, stopping at Produce Stands along the way or stopping along the way for a Walk (like at Lake Piru) -- sometimes ending up at one of my most favorite places in all of Southern California, just south of the Santa Clara river Watershed in the Western Santa Monica Mountains:  Nicholas Flat above Leo Carillo State Beach (there are no signs to Nicholas Flat - you have to get directions and just be good at going down Santa Monica Mountain Roads).

One of my days out in Nature - seeing and feeling some Wide Open Spaces!!

For me it is really true:  Every Day is Earth Day!!

Read about the Local Farmers in the Santa Clara River Valley Watershed at the above Nature Conservancy link.  You can really buy their Produce in the Watershed -- and have a great trip doing it!!

But there are some things, for me, that mean more than that as part of "Picnic For The Planet " in any year -- I started this blog article with a picture of my very own Rosemary Plant sitting outside my Front Door.  I went out this afternoon to cut off some Rosemary Leaves to put in my Salad I was making - oh, also got some Fresh Oregano and Fresh Basil from my very own plants -- part of "Picnic For The Planet" for me means growing my own fresh herbs to cook with.  The Rosemary Plant I have had for years -- the Oregano Plant is a couple of years old.  Fresh Basil plants I buy every year -- and I bought my first one this year on April 8th!!

My Earth Day Picnic this year:  I think I will take a walk through some local wild fields over to a local park and under some Cherry trees, have my own Picnic all right -- including some dishes made with Fresh Herbs I've grown myself!!

HAPPY EARTH DAY!!

Nature Writings - Their Influence In My Life

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - My Handmade Designs on ARTFIRE -
 -- and in the SHOPPING MALL by PAYVMENT on FACEBOOK

I don't remember the exact time when Nature - or some part of Nature became so important to me.

Was it a vivid sky filled with Sun and Blue Sky and Billowing Clouds (I have always like dramatic skies)???!!

Was it loving to go see the Bear that I could throw peanuts at when I was a little girl?

Was it that day in Summer Camp (I was about 5 years old) when they took us for a hike in a Forest Preserve in Chicago, IL and the Camp Counselor showed us the different plants along the path, including the Poison Ivy and how to recognize it and therefore avoid it, which I have never forgotten to this day???

Was it hiking in the Northern Peninsula of Michigan with my Family -- and we saw Bears?

But by the time I was in High School -- found the book, SILENT SPRING by Rachel Carson, read it and wrote a paper on it -- I was a confirmed environmentalist and Nature-Lover!!

That was the first Nature Writing that really made an impression on me from reading it myself (versus hearing about it from an adult).

Since then, I have read various Writings which could be considered "Nature Writings" on and off in my Life.  But some have had a more profound affect on me than others.  So, I decided to make a Linking Book List of those "more profound ones" and put them here on my blog (lower right sidebar).

Some are about different subjects in Nature -- or preserving it.  Some I have read every word of -- some just parts of that I could really relate to.  

For instance, most American children at some point in their education get introduced to one or another of Thoreau's writings -- and I did -- but it was seeing Quotes from his Essay, "Walking" in the book, HEAVEN IS UNDER OUR FEET, that reminded me of what about Thoreau's writings that I had seen, that I really felt. 

Walking has been a major part of my life -- I have gotten a lot of Joy from various Walks - or Saunterings - down streets and under Trees, through Forests large and small, on Cliffs overlooking Oceans and Valleys, through Wild Fields with Birds and Road Runners and Snakes and Cottontail Rabbits with Hawks overhead.

The Books on Walks and Trails and Preserves in various places in California gave me a lot of Joy -- I was able to find some of those "hidden-away" places to go Walking or Hiking.

The Leopold books gave me knowledge and answers to questions I had on the Lands and the Wildlife -- and some concepts of what to do, as did the Books on HOTSPOTS (Biodiversity) and Forest Biodiversity from Conservation Scientists.

Every book listed below has had a definite influence on me -- so I thought I would share them in a "Linking List" on my blog, so others can find them!!  Every single one of them is available somewhere online these days!!

I just hope that maybe someone who finds them - will also have Joy like I have - and maybe learn about what they can do to keep the Nature that gives so much to us!

SILENT SPRING by RACHEL CARSON

DAY WALKS IN THE SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS

TRAILS OF THE ANGELES 100 HIKES IN THE SAN GABRIELS by JOHN W. ROBINSON

CALIFORNIA WILD LANDS by DWIGHT HOLING (Nature Conservancy Preserves)

HEAVEN IS UNDER OUR FEET - A Book for Walden Woods

WALKING by Henry David Thoreau

A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC by ALDO LEOPOLD

A WALK IN THE WOODS by BILL BRYSON

SUMMERS WITH THE BEARS by JACK BECKLUND

HOTSPOTS: Earth's Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions by Russel A. Mittermeier et al. 

WILD CALIFORNIA VANISHING LANDS VANISHING WILDLIFE by A. STARKER LEOPOLD, RAYMOND DASMAN, TUPPER ANSEL BLAKE   


BOOKS I HAVE READ ABOUT -- TO READ NEXT:

CONSERVING FOREST BIODIVERSITY - DAVID B. LINDENMAYER & JERRY F. FRANKLIN

HOTSPOTS REVISITED: Earth's Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions - Russel A. Mittermeier et al.

(Note:  the Photographs in this blog post are taken by me, Ruth Sandra Sperling - All Rights Reserved )

A New Year's Resolution -- to Support Activities That Can Help Slow Global Warming

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items In Fibers



Global Warming -- one of the Hottest subjects around these days!!

To start off and establish my stand on this issue, I would like to quote Louis Blumberg of The Nature Conservancy California Office, who works in Forestry and Climate Change for them, from the article, "The Carbon Equation, Can Forests Save Us From Climate Change?" by Jane Braxton Little in the Winter 2009 edition of Nature Conservancy Magazine:

"Nature is our greatest ally in the fight against climate change."

Why quote him? Because that is totally how I feel and I feel that is the only realistic solution to what I call "un-natural Global Warming".

I am not always sure that people understand it overall. Some do and some don't. Climate Change to some degree happens naturally and geologically all the time on our planet. Geologically there are warming periods and cooling periods. If you read scientific journals and about Geology and about Paleontology, you will see discussions about it and varying opinions. Historically on Earth, there is documented information about warming periods and cooling periods in past centuries and eras -- and what happened as a result of these warming and cooling periods.

To some extent, some scientists are trying to make predictions based on historical occurrences on the planet -- and based on scientific documentation of evidence of Global Warming now -- such as glaciers and ice sheets melting.

The huge question seems to be -- how much of this Global Warming is natural, since the planet is in a geological warming period anyway? And how much of it can we do anything about to slow Global Warming and protect our own human habitat?

As an environmentalist, forests are some of my favorite places to go and get protected and therefore study, so I will focus on this.

Being in a warming period is significant to forestry scientists as it affects the species in the forests -- and the health of certain species in the forests and their growth -- and possibly significant changes in the makeup of a forest ecosystem - whether it is natural warming and/or the result of human-caused warming.

Various human actions on the planet affect Global Warming by increasing carbon emissions into the atmosphere -- various activites directly related to the industrial age for sure increase carbon emissions into the atmosphere.

But one of the human activites that has resulted in a high percentage of carbon emissions is that of Deforestation and Forest Degradation -- and that we can do something about. And this is the main point of this blog article.

Just looking at the fact of how much forest has been cut down over this planet in the last few centuries boggles the mind - at least mine. Looking at facts like part(s) of the Sahara Desert use to be forest that was cut down centuries ago (I don't know exactly what parts geographically) - this deforestation has been going on a long time -- and all the forests that have been and still are being cut down for building cities, towns, agricultural sites -- it looks to me like only a fraction of the original forest on our planet is left. And much did not come down naturally. As trees provide the natural benefits of holding water in the soils/lands, shading and keeping the lands cooler -- as well as storing carbon, it is obvious to me that cutting down huge areas of forest over the planet has contributed to Global Warming and that is human-caused!!

Therefore, we need to look at what we can do about it.

One of the Forestry scientists that I admire and respect for his perspective on forest, forest health and ecological integrity and forest restoration is Dr. Jerry F. Franklin, a Professor in Forest Resources at the University of Washington in the State of Washington.

I first became acquainted with his work in forestry when I became involved with the Sierra Nevada Forest Protection Campaign and their Conservation Strategy for the Management of the Sierra Nevada National Forests; this Conservation Strategy is based on the Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project (SNEP - http://ceres.ca.gov/snep/), which was commissioned by the United States Congress -- and Dr. Jerry F. Franklin is one of the SNEP authors. He also was one of the speakers at the Sierra Nevada Old Forests Public Science Workshop put on by the Sierra Nevada Framework for Conservation and Collaboration, Pacific Southwest Region and Research of the USDA Forest Service on August 24-25, 1999 at UC Davis -- which I attended.

Earlier this year, I emailed Dr. Jerry F. Franklin particularly about his opinion regarding the role of forests in dealing with Global Warming -- and I got his permission to quote him:

"Ruth: Actually we have a much greater percentage of the forest remaining on the
planet than 4% although I cannot tell you the exact percentage. Certainly the
forests do help cool things but, preversely, they may also help warm the planet
as well, due to the fact that they have such a low albedo -- i.e., they retain
most of the energy that they absorb from the sun. It really is very complicated
and I don't think that we have it all figured out yet. Certainly, we should not
be cutting down any of our remaining old-growth forests in the moist temperate
regions and in dry forest regions, like much of the Sierras, we should be
retaining all of the old trees and trying to grow more big old trees, as well,
since they are likely to be more resistent to both wildfire and climate change.

Planting trees is certainly a good thing to be doing and they certainly
can modify the environments in places that we live as well as help modify carbon
balances and climate throughout the globe. Fundamentally a good thing to do. On
the other hand, it is very important to do some active forest restoration in the
Sierra Nevada because many of the forests in your area are simply too dense for
their own good. Any restoration should retain the old trees and, even more,
enhance their potentiall for survival by removing fuels and competing vegetation
around the existing old trees. There is a very good recent PSW Research Station
General Technical Report by Malcolm North and others that has some very good
recommendations for restoring the mixed-conifer forests in the Sierra Nevada.
Jerry"

I noted here in his statement that not only planting trees is important, but proper management of the forests -- to not be too dense and to "enhance their potential for survival by removing fuels and competing vegetation around the existing old trees" -- this is something I learned about when listening to forestry scientists talk about "protecting Old Growth", which also means encouraging "Old Growth characterisitics", which in many cases will require the removal of smaller, undergrowth trees and the competing vegetation (as Dr. Jerry F. Franklin states) to allow the larger trees to grow even larger -- as well as not removing the Old Growth, which is the popular environmental stand! It is faster-growing trees with large canopies that will naturally store carbon through the natural process of Photosynthesis.

There are various projects and studies going on -- and with the advent of the California Climate Action Registry (CCAR) and California Assembly Bill 32, it looks like carbon offset programs by protecting and managing private forests for "forest carbon offset credits" may result in more.

One such forest project being managed is in fact a forest restoration project which The Nature Conservancy got involved with as a partner by paying for a Conservation Easement on a working forest prohibiting future development and managing this forest for restoration and carbon-sequestering potential. It is presently a relaitvely young Northern California Coastal Redwood forest that has been commercially logged again and again in the past by timber companies - but the fast-growing young trees in this Coastal Redwood forest have a huge potential for storing carbon as they grow per scientific analysis -- and this is proving to be a successful source of forest carbon credits. It is the "Garcia River Forest Project" -- my information is from The Nature Conservancy article quoted at the beginning of this blog post, which is online at http://www.nature.org/magazine/winter2009/features/index.html -- and from The Nature Conservancy website: http://www.nature.org/initiatives/climatechange/work/art23798.html .

One solution -- support Forestry Projects such as this to slow Global Warming!!

Another Solution from The Nature Conservancy -- Plant A Billion Trees in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil: http://www.plantabillion.org/ (the widget for this is on the left here on my blog!!)

Another solution, this one from Conservation International -- support the Actions being taken by Conservation International to Stabilize Climate through their programs for "Protecting forests and other ecosystems as a solution to climate change" as given at http://www.conservation.org/learn/climate/Pages/overview.aspx :

1. Saving Forests http://www.conservation.org/forests
2. High Forest Cover, Low Deforestation (HFLD) http://www.conservation.org/learn/climate/pages/climate_change_hfld.aspx
3. Reducing Emissions From Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) http://www.conservation.org/learn/climate/pages/climate_redd.aspx

TAKE ACTION BY PROTECTING AN ACRE OF FOREST THROUGH CONSERVATION INTERNATIONAL FOR $15 http://www.conservation.org/protectanacre

Also, one of my favorite solutions to suggest to people to help with reducing some carbon emissions in their everyday lives -- is to buy and do Handmade!! There are so many ways to do this!!

Handmade causes much lower, if any, carbon emissions.

My Handmade crocheted and knitted items (for sale at http://rssdesignsinfiber.etsy.com/ ), made by either natural light or various forms of energy-saving flourescent lighting, certainly results in less carbon emissions than the similar items that are mass-produced on machines which generate lots of carbon emissions. There are many places where you can buy Handmade online - I am on http://www.etsy.com/, which is a website for Sellers and Buyers of Handmade, Vintage and Supplies for Handmade.

Also -- I encourage Local Harvest and getting foods locally as much as possible as that is part of a "low carbon" life, also!!

Resolutions can be a good thing -- they are postulates for what you choose to do in your life -- New Year has been a popular time of the year to make them, though I personally believe you should not limit yourself to just then to make Resolutions for living a better life!!

And I can't think of a better New Year's Resolution than to find ways to live your life and support activities that can help SLOW Global Warming!!

From The Nature Conservancy -- What Eco-Issue Keeps You Up At Night!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items In Fibers


The Nature Conservancy, one of my favorite organizations on the planet, has come through again - this time on their blog.

I don't know how it is for most people -- I admit -- I was brought up from the early 1950's by a father who was an active environmentalist (including anti-nuke) before it became the popular thing to do.

I heard about it all the days I was growing up. Books on environmental subjects were all over our home. I was taken to wild places like forests from early childhood. Recycling and Reusing we just a normal part of our everyday life.

I remember being on one of my first hikes in a Forest Preserve in Chicago, IL and being shown what poison ivy was by a camp counselor -- I have never forgotten, always recognize poison ivy and therefore have never ended up with having a problem with it! Existing with and respecting Nature!

Some of my favorite places I have ever been have been in the "green worlds" of canopied forests.

So, when I saw the post by The Nature Conservancy in Facebook, I jumped on it and went to their blog to the post: "Open Thread: Which Eco-Issue Keeps You Up At Night?" - left a comment there and in Facebook -- and I will reiterate it here:

"What keeps me up at night is actually 2 things, but connected. When are enough
of the people and governments on the planet going to realize and act on the fact
that we have to live our lives in such a way as to preserve the web of life the
best that we can — or are we going to keep negatively impacting our own habitat
to the point where it is not habitable by humans? Part of this — and a big part
of this for me — is I worry about how much of the forest that originally covered
the planet has been cut down and is still being cut down; we need to preserve
existing forests and plant trees that grow qucikly and strongly enough to grow
canopies/root structures in 15 to 25 years that keep the land cooler and
moister."

I have a whole section on my blog devoted to "forests" -- because they are so important to me.

What is important to you?

What, if anything, keeps you up at night?

TO LIFE!!!

SUSTAINABLE DECORATING - especially with WOOD!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items In Fibers


As far as I'm concerned, sustainable is the only way to live, but with things for the home out there made in so many materials -- and some materials the average consumer may just not know that much about or not realize that buying it goes back to something being done that somehow damages the environment.

But when it comes to wood products, there are ways to be fairly sure that there is at least some kind of ethics behind the source of the wood use to make the product.

There is the Forest Stewarship Council - and it handles certifying forests around the world and their products that are managed sustainably. That means that when you are buying something made from new wood - you can look or ask for a certification that the wood comes from a forest that is managed for Land and Forest Health.

Now there are other organizations in the timber and paper and furniture industries that claim to do proper certification of sustainable forestry, but I have rather high standards and so do the environmental attorneys that I listen to (NRDC, EarthJustice, The Wilderness Society, The Nature Conservancy).

The Forest Stewardship Council certification of wood products is the only certification that I have read that these environmental attorneys feel is really based on standards that result in properly managed forests for overall ecological integrity.

Personally, I only buy wood products that I feel good about buying. For me personally, I don't need that much and I am not one of these people who re-decorate my home or work spaces on a seasonal basis -- though I have known of people who do!!

Mostly used or vintage wood pieces are good enough for me -- some, I prefer over new ones, though I can't say I would never want something made in new wood.

But I feel so strongly about protecting the forests left on the planet -- and planting trees for ecological health -- that I would never buy a wood product that I knew was made from a clearcut -- actually, I would want any wood product that I bought to be made from wood that was harvested "single selection" -- meaning one tree at a time - and in such a way as to not damage other trees (or their root structures) around it.

Aldo Leopold ( one of my favorite conservation writers) and his family and supporters (Aldo Leopold Foundation) have written and done research on this issue of susatinable forestry for generations now - just for one example .

Smaller wood products can be made from the various pieces of wood that can be found all over a forest floor -- in fact, it can be beneficial to collect these pieces of wood (sometimes called debris by forest managers), because if left in the forest these pieces of wood (the debris) could create what is known as a "fuel ladder" for a fire and increase the fire risk/hazard -- so picking them up for whatever use is beneficial in reducing fire risk/hazard!

In the Angeles National Forest, the National Forest just to the south of where I live, you can get permits to go around picking up these pieces of wood littering the forest floor for personal use -- the US Forest Service encourages it and it is part of their Fire Hazard Reduction program (I did at one time know someone who had such a permit to get wood for making things).

If you check around the Internet, you can find articles about how much of the original forest that covered this planet is left -- and I have seen the figure of 4% (yes, that means that 96% is gone), but I am not qualified to state what the actually accurate figure is. I just know that we have relatively little forest left and there are so many benefits of forests: shade, trees hold water in the lands, trees clean the air and water -- and we don't have those benefits for the percentage of forest that is gone --and it worries me.

All I am asking and reminding people of -- when you decorate your buildings, whatever they are -- keep in mind that it will be better for everyone if you do it SUSTAINABLY!!


Ruth Sandra

Human Adaptation - A Necessity in a World with Climate Changing

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber



Again, one of my favorite environmental groups, The Nature Conservancy, tackles a subject on their blog that is just not the most favorite we like to hear.

But unfortunately, it is a reality we must face -- and we must prepare for.

Climate Change is a reality -- with or without the Human Impacts that are affecting it. Geologically, if you study the history of Earth, you will find information about the different Climate Changes it has gone through -- for instance, a clear case is that the Climate on Earth was quite different during the era of the Dinosaurs - and when they went extinct.

Various scientists and various organizations have gone into what is going on now -- and they are trying to predict what will happen.

For example, just yesterday I read an article online on sustainablog.org about a Climate Report and it had maps showing two different scenarios and the temperatures around the USA in the two scenarios: Lower Emissions Scenario and Higher Emissions Scenario predictions for the years 2080-2099. Take a look here. Very, very interesting analysis. With the Lower Emissions Scenario they predict Lower Temperatures in this article!!

There are studies that have been mentioned in online articles about Climate Change, Global Warming, Mass Extinction -- and what extinctions may happen by 2050 -- as I read in this article from 2004: "Study sees mass extinctions via warmings". Here are a few quotes from this article that you can go to and read yourself.

"The sweeping new analysis, enlisting scientists from 14 laboratories
around the globe, found that more than one-third of 1,103 native species they
studied in six regions around the world could vanish or plunge to near
extinction by 2050 as climate change turns plains into deserts or alters
forests. It did not examine marine species."

"The researchers concede there are many uncertainties in both climate
forecasts and the computer models they used to forecast future extinctions. But
they said their dire conclusions may well come to pass if industrial nations do
not curtail emissions of greenhouse gases that trap heat in the
atmosphere."

"Depending on the temperature increase, the researchers found that 15 to 37
percent of the studied species will either go extinct or be on the road to
extinction by 2050."

It is hard to know exactly what to believe and the scientists themselves are not sure about the forecasts, but scientists who have studied previous mass extinctions on Earth have stated that it looks like Climate Change was part of it, if not the main cause.

Search the Internet yourself: Global Warming, Climate Change, Mass Extinction -- and see what you come up with!!

What I get out of all of this is 2 factual situations that we need to accept:

1. That Global Warming/Climate Change is occurring -- naturally.
2. That the greenhouse emissions from industrial nations may be causing Earth's naturally occurring warming trend to warm up the Earth faster.

And that this is all causing us biodiversity and extinction problems Globally!!

However we look at it -- Human Adaptation to Global Warming is something we must deal with -- and read this blog article from The Nature Conservancy: "Human Adaptation Is the Key to Conservation in a Changing Climate". It is something we must deal with and plan for in our lives.


Ruth

THE NATURE CONSERVANCY SUPPORTS ADAPTATION FUNDING FOR CLIMATE CHANGE

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items In Fibers


I just read an article about something that I think is mandatory and responsible for us to support, because Climate change -- both naturally occurring geologic warming and cooling periods, as well as human-caused global warmings, are facts in this world -- at least from the data I have read.

The article is on the blog of The Nature Conservancy, one of my favorite environmental groups, because they work to protect and save all kinds of ecosystems worldwide in may different biotic provinces -- or ecoregions.

It is about adaptation funding for the climate change strategy of adapting natural and human systems to a changing climate.

Here is the link to the article: http://blog.nature.org/2009/05/traditional-conservation-methods-for-a-new-threat/

It is reality we have to face and a responsibility that we need to take in our world.

Climate change happens and we need to adapt the way we live so that we can survive as well as we can.

I have seen pictures and reports of the melting of ice/glaciers in the Arctic and Antarctic --it is happening. Face it and take responsibility.


Ruth

THE RIGHT WAY TO DO CARBON OFFSETS - PROTECT EXISTING OLD GROWTH FORESTS AND REPLANT HETEROGENEOUSLY MULTI-AGED

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread


I just read an article on the Internet that was very upsetting to me.

http://www.climateark.org/blog/2008/12/light-redd-the-looming-tragedy.asp

It covers the problem with carbon offset funds somehow going to logging of primary old growth forests.

Folks - NO, NO, NO - that is not the right way to do carbon offsets.

The primary Old Growth forests on the planet are not supposed to be logged any longer - if absolutely necessary, based on current environmental analysis for fire hazard, small understory trees may need to be removed to protect the Old Growth and keep fire out of Old Growth and their tree canopies. Other than that, no tree removal in primary Old Growth forests should be done.

Carbon offsets are good for protecting Old Growth from removal.

And carbon offsets are good for restoring highly significant areas of forests that have been previously destroyed, such as the Atlantic Forest in Brazil.

Restoring means restoring - not planting so-called "tree-farms" for future logging or homogeneous even-aged tree plantings, either. Restoring means planting hetereogeneously (definition: in a way that is heterogeneous, which is defined as "consisting of or involving dissimilar elements or parts; not homogeneous"), which in terms of trees means planting different species and they should be native species to that forest eco-system. They should also do planting in small groups at different times, so it is not even-aged, but you end with trees of different ages. After a canopy is grown in the area, they should allow natural regeneration. Along with planting trees, the soil and its total underground biotic province needs to be restored.

I have seen a restored forest - restored from cleared land in an farming area in central Illinois - the woodlands of Robert Allerton Park are so beautiful, you can hardly believe that only a fraction of these woodlands are virgin forest. I went to the University of Illinois, which runs Robert Allerton Park, 1969 to 1972 and the canopied woodlands of Robert Allerton Park provided a wonderful place to hike. It was from the head Biologist at Robert Allerton Park, who was a professor at the University of Illinois, that I learned several years ago about the woodlands being to a large part a restored forest with a fraction of it being virgin forest. 1,000 acres of it are now a National Natural Landmark. I have also been told that this is a Regional Biodiversity Hotspot for that eco-region. During my hiking experiences there in the 1970 through 1980, which were truly wonderful for me, I had no idea that it was not a virgin forest. Read about it here: http://www.continuinged.uiuc.edu/oce-sites/allerton/history.cfm.

So, you see, from personal experience and knowledge, I know cleared forest land can be properly restored to be real forest and not a tree farm.

If you donate for carbon offsets, you need to make sure that the program you are donating to is really about restoring trees or protecting trees/land to the level where they actually do sufficient carbon sequestration as to count in offsetting carbon emissions and reducing globally the amount of carbon in this atmosphere - this issue is discussed in an article on Wikipedia, which is very interesting - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_Sequestration.

I mentioned the Atlantic Forest of Brazil here and in earlier posts - the Atlantic Forest of Brazil is listed as a globally significant Biodiversity Hotspot by the International Conservation Scientists of the organization, Conservation Internaltional, www.conservation.org.

Planting the area of the Atlantic Forest of Brazil is one of the programs being done by The Nature Conservancy - "Planting a Billion Trees" at www.nature.org.

Also, on The Nature Conservancy website is an "Ask the Conservationist" article from June 2008 on the subject of "Do Carbon Offsets Really Work?" -- http://support.nature.org/site/PageServer?pagename=asktheconservationist_200806&JServSessionIdr012=3q075ukq61.app43a. Read this article and you will get a realistic answer.

I have discussed this matter several times in my blog posts and I go into information from a number of different scientifically based organizations in my posts - check here to read my earlier posts and get links to various organizations.

I love real forests - but it is more than my love of forests that is my motivation for writing my blog posts -we need live, carbon sequestering forests on this planet, in addition to reducing carbon emissions, for this planet and this web of life to be healthy for us humans to live in.

We all need to take responsibility for this condition.

TO LIFE!!

Ruth

UNITED NATIONS MAP SUPPORTS PROTECTION OF HIGH-PRIORITY LANDS GLOBALLY FOR CARBON STORAGE AND BIODIVERSITY

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread


I found out about a pdf document on the internet from the
UNEP (United Nations Environmental Programme) World Conservation Monitoring Centre, which they have named "Carbon and biodiversity, A demonstration atlas".

Here is the link: http://www.unep.org/pdf/carbon_biodiversity.pdf

Some of the environmental groups I strongly support for their work on protecting and restoring biodiversity, The Nature Conservancy and Conservation International, were contributors to this report.

I am glad to see that the United Nations has shown this support for Global Biodiversity.

A large part of it is protecting lands of primary Old Growth - some of the healthiest and most ecologically significant lands left on this planet.

Not logging the primary Old Growth left on this planet may be the most valuable thing that we can do on this planet at this time - for the web of life.

Anyone who has seen a clearcut in a forest first-hand and in-person knows from personal experience what a clearcut looks like and how it must affect the forest -- and I have seen a clearcut that must not have been too old at the time I saw it. It was in the Sequoia National Forest in the late 1980's when logging and clearcuts were still going on there. It wasn't too far off the Western Divide Highway in the southern portion of the Sequoia National Forest in what is now the Giant Sequoia National Monument. I was driving down a back road looking for a good place to take some people hiking - I drove around a corner and was shocked at the devastation of this clearcut. Obviously, I was not going to bring these people hiking here as they liked to photograph live trees, etc. It totally upset me and was part of my motivation for getting involved in public issues regarding managing the National Forests.

And, YES, this was in an area not too terribly far from Giant Sequoia groves, though I don't know exactly how close - it was on the western side of the Western Divide Highway somewhere south of the Wheel Meadow Grove and east of Red Hill Grove and Peyrone Grove. I have a map of the Sequoia National Forest and I know where these are.

It was reading Aldo Leopold - both in his book, A Sand County Almanac, and his paper, The Last Stand - that I found out about the devastating effects of clearcutting on the land in addition to just the removal of the trees.

I would like to quote from these.

From "The Last Stand" by Aldo Leopold as published in The Leopold Outlook Winter 2004, A newsletter published quarterly by The Aldo Leopold Foundation.

"Few laymen realize that the penalties of violence to a forest may far outlast its visible evidence. I know a hardwood forest called the Spessart, covering a mountain on the north flank of the Alps. Half of it has sustained cuttings since 1605, but was never slashed. The other half was slashed during the 1600's, but has been under intensive forestry during the last 150 years. Despite this rigid protection, the old slashing now produces only mediocre pine, while the unslashed portion grows the finest cabinet oak in the world; one of those oaks fetches a higher price than a whole acre of the old slashings. On the old slashings the litter accumulates without rotting, stumps and limbs disappear slowly, natural reproduction is slow. On the unslashed portion litter disappears as it falls, stumps and limbs rot at once, natural reproduction is automatic. Foresters attribute the inferior performance of the old slashing to its depleted microflora, meaning that the underground community of bacteria, molds, fungi, and burrowing mammals which constitute half the environment of a tree.
"The existence of the term microflora implies, to the layman, that science knows all the citizens of the underground community, and is able to push them around at will. As a matter of fact, science knows little more than the community exists, and that it is important."

In the book, A Sand County Almanac, in the section, The Upshot, in the sub-section, "Wilderness for Science", I quote Aldo Leopold again:

"Many forest plantations are producing one-log or two-log trees on soil which originally grew three-log and four-log trees. Why? Thinking foresters know that the cause lies not in the tree, but in the micro-flora of the soil, and that it may take more years to restore the soil flora than it took to destroy it."

So, clearcutting - or "slashing" as Aldo Leopold called it in "The Last Stand", has a destructive impact on the land that affects future growth on that land.

WITH WHAT WE NEED TO DO TO PROTECT THE HEALTH OF THE PLANET AND THE LAND, I THEREFORE CONCLUDE THAT WE CANNOT AFFORD TO DO ANY MORE CLEARCUTTING ON THIS PLANET - ESPECIALLY ON PRIMARY OLD GROWTH LANDS.

Also, in the same issue of The Leopold Outlook of Winter 2004 is an essay written by 2 former Chiefs of the United States Forest Service published originally August 24, 2003, Mike Dombeck and Jack Ward Thomas - "Declare Harvest of Old-Growth Forests Off-Limits and Move On"

I would like to quote one paragraph that I feel contains key, relevant information.

"Second, scientists increasingly appreciate old-growth forests as reservoirs of biodiversity with associated 'banks' of genetic material. Most stands are prtected as habitat for threatened or endangered (and associated) species - to meet the purpose of the Endangered Species Act '...to provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved...' It's time to stop fighting over what little old growth remains unprotected."

And part of another paragraph discussing forest management from this same article.

"Forest management should focus on restoring forest health and reducing fire risk, intially in areas where risk to human life and property are greatest - the so-called wildand/urban interface. Then, appropriate management practices should be strategically targeted in the right places and at the right scales across the landscape."

YES, FOLKS, PEOPLE WHO RAN (PAST TENSE MEANING IN THE PAST) THE US FOREST SERVICE FEEL THAT OLD GROWTH SHOULD NOT BE LOGGED.

It is now becoming a global issue - with The Nature Conservancy (see Plant A Billion Trees gadget on this blog!) and Conservation International and Care2 running campaigns for protecting rainforest and planting trees - and the United Nations publishing papers on it.

You, too can join the bandwagon - through these organizations you can contribute to protecting the Old Growth forests left on this planet - incluidng for free by clicking on Care2's Race for the Rainforest!!


Ruth

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread


I am thankful for a lot of things.

To Internet friends:

Etsy - http://www.etsy.com/
Eco Etsy Street Team - http://ecoetsy.blogspot.com/
Design Style Guide - http://www.designstyleguide.net/
Etsy Thread Artists Team - just starting!!
Sherry - http://shaylyn629.blogspot.com/
My Followers and Those I Am Following on Twitter - http://twitter.com/rssdesigns



Some Enviornmental Groups who I personally know are making a huge difference for our planet and our lives:

The Nature Conservancy - http://www.nature.org/ - Private and Public Lands protection & restoration
Conservation International - http://www.conservation.org/ - Biodiversity Hotspots
Aldo Leopold Foundation - http://www.aldoleopold.org/ - The Land Ethic
The Wildlife Society - http://www.wildlife.org/
The Wilderness Society - http://www.wilderness.org/
National Resource Defense Council - http://www.nrdc.org/ - their attorneys have played a major role in legal battles protecting ecologically significant public lands and concerning Environmental Impact Statements and public lands management that I know about.
World Wildlife Fund - http://www.wwf.org/
Union of Concerned Scientists - http://www.ucsusa.org
Central Sierra Environmental Resource Center - http://www.cserc.org



For Health:

RBC Life Sciences - http://ruthssperling.rbclifesciences.com/Default.aspx
Vitacost - http://www.vitacost.com/
Covert Bailey Books and Products - http://www.covertbailey.com/index2.html
The Wolfe Clinic - http://www.thewolfeclinic.com/ - check their News & Information!!
UCLA HEALTH SYSTEM - http://www.uclahealth.org/


ALL OF THESE HAVE HELPED ME LEAD A BETTER LIFE!

Some things to find on THE NATURE CONSERVANCY website

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread

THE NATURE CONSERVANCY website is just huge and has some really wonderful things on it for the dedicated nature lover/environmentalist: http://www.nature.org/.

One of the things they offer are some beautiful nature photographs to Decorate Your Desktop!!

My desktop wallpaper is a photo from them of the Parker Ranch -- an area not so far from where I live that has a lot of significant habitat and is a wildlife corridor at the southern end of the Sierra Nevada. It has such a beautiful sky - I love seeing it on my desktop all the time!!

They have certain photos that they feature every month and here is the November 2008 one:

You can go to the link for Decorate Your Desktop above to choose your own nature photo for your desktop!!

And -- you can send free email cards with all kinds of nature photos in them from their website:

http://support.nature.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ecard_landing&autologin=true!!

I love what The Nature Conservancy does in nature and I love what they do to make sure people know about it on their website!!

Ruth

ECOETSY AUCTION FOR A CAUSE - About 10 hours left to bid!!!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread

Well, folks, this is the last day -- about 10 hours left on our auction for a donation to The Nature Conservancy!!

Check out the EcoEtsy blog: http://ecoetsy.blogspot.com/

Check out the auction page: http://www.ecoetsy.com/auction-oct2008.html

Check out the photo album of what's being auctioned off: http://ecoetsyauction.myphotoalbum.com/

What we are doing is part of a green economy.

What The Nature Conservancy does is part of a a green economy and a live planet!!

Be part of it!!

Ruth

UPDATE! EcoEtsy AUCTION FOR A CAUSE - 1 Day Left To Bid!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread

October 30th is tomorrow!! 1 day left from the time I am writing this to bid on our basket of eco-friendly goodies with the proceeds going to The Nature Conservancy!!

Read our EcoEtsy blog, http://ecoetsy.blogspot.com for news and pictures of the donated items -- and the update! See some detailed photos and info about the people who made them and how!!

Bid and get the auction information at: http://www.ecoetsy.com/auction-oct2008.html

Photo Album of the items donated: http://ecoetsyauction.myphotoalbum.com/

The Nature Conservancy, with all the land and ecosystems they have protected over the years, is very deserving of the donation!! And, actually, what a fun bunch of goodies to win!!

If you haven't already -- check it out!! If you have - or have bidded, see where the bidding is at now!

Ruth

EcoEtsy AUCTION FOR A CAUSE Ongoing!!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread

Our EcoEtsy AUCTION FOR A CAUSE is still ongoing with some bids already put in -- yes, we have some bids and if you are interested in it and haven't bid yet, you'll need to bid yourself by the Thursday evening (Oct. 30th)!

Check here! http://www.ecoetsy.com/auction-oct2008.html

After today (Sunday), there are 4 days left to bid on the collection of about 60 handmade, eco-minded items!!

Take a look at the pictures of what has been donated and is being auctioned off:

http://ecoetsyauction.myphotoalbum.com/

Remember -- the proceeds go to The Nature Conservancy!!

I have a picture here of the bag I crocheted for the Auction. It is a small bag - about 3 1/2 inches in diameter and 5 inches high. It is green, ecru and glittering sienna.

Us like-minded folks in EcoEtsy really have the welfare of our environment and the people who live in it on our minds (you should see our emailing sometimes!). We really make an effort to live our lives and conduct our businesses in such a way as not to harm our environment and maybe even help it!!

Below I will quote my favorite philosopher on the environment, Aldo Leopold, in that there is a value to protecting our environment even if there doesn't seem to be a commercial profit in it. Protecting elements in our environment that are essential to its healthy functioning, even if that protection doesn't have a commercial value, is important for our lives. Of course, if you find new ways to use things that would otherwise be thrown out, you can reduce waste (good for the environment) and save money you would otherwise have spent on something new (good for your pocketbook), but some economists would tell you that consumer spending is a good sign of the economy - I would say to find other things to spend your money on while Reducing, Reusing and Recycling.

Aldo Leopold from "Substitutes For a Land Ethic", which is part of "The Land Ethic", which is part of "The Upshot" in the book, A Sand County Alamanc, copyright 1966 by Oxford University Press:

"To sum up: a system of conservation based solely on economic self-interest is hopelessly lopsided. It tends to ignore, and thus eventually eliminate, many elements in the land community that lack commercial value, but are (as far as we know) essential to its healthy functioning. It assumes, falsely, I think, that the economic parts of the biotic clock will function without the uneconomic parts. It tends to relegate to government many functions too large, too complex, or too widely dispersed to be performed by government.

"An ethical obligation on the part of the private owner is the only visible rememdy for these situations."

We, in EcoEtsy, who are putting on our AUCTION FOR A CAUSE, are private owners.

The Nature Conservancy is an organization who's funding is based on donations from private owners and who works to protect those uneconomic parts that are so essential to the healthy functioning of the land community we live in -- to our "web of life".

We, at EcoEtsy, are trying to be ethical in our lives and businesses - and our AUCTION FOR A CAUSE is part of that.

From me, Thanks to everyone who has participated - our EcoEtsy Co-Leaders, the donators, the bidders and all who helped promoting!!

Ruth

P.S. - You can find the book, A Sand County Almanac, online - and through the Aldo Leopold Foundation, http://www.aldoleopold.org/.

EcoEtsy AUCTION FOR A CAUSE is ON!!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread

OUR AUCTION IS ON!

The auction information: http://www.ecoetsy.com/auction-oct2008.html

THE PHOTOS ARE UP!!

The photos of what is in the basket being auctioned for the donation:
http://ecoetsyauction.myphotoalbum.com/.

A VARIETY OF THINGS FROM JEWELRY TO BAGS TO CARDS TO SILVER -- TAKE A LOOK -- ALL HANDMADE, ALL ECO-FRIENDLY, SOME THINGS MADE FROM RECYLCED, RE-PURPOSED OR "RESCUED" MATERIALS!

FINAL PROCEEDS TO THE NATURE CONSERVANCY!!

Ruth

ECOETSY AUCTION FOR A CAUSE - Starts tomorrow Monday, October 20, 2008!!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread





STARTING MONDAY OCTOBER 20TH --

YOU CAN FIND IT ON THE ECOETSY WEBSITE:

ALL AUCTION DETAILS INCLUDING HOW TO BID AND WHERE TO FIND THE PHOTOS OF OUR ECO-FRIENDLY GOODIES ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 20TH.

As more than 60 eco-friendly items are in this basket being auctioned off, you can find some things for yourself -- and some gifts for Birthdays and Holidays (Hanukah, Christmas, Kwanza, New Years).

And make a donation to a very worthy environmental organization: The Nature Conservancy!!

REALLY SHOW YOU CARE ENOUGH ABOUT OUR ENVIRONMENT TO BUY AND/OR GIVE "ECO"!! BIDDING WILL BE GOING ON THROUGH OCTOBER 30TH!

Though not all of our EcoEtsy members have donated to this auction basket, we all sell on http://www.etsy.com/ and are really dedicated to Reducing, Reusing and Recycling in our businesses.

You can find the shops of the EcoEtsy members on our Profile page on etsy: http://team.etsy.com/profilest/eco.shtml.

Ruth

THE ECOETSY STREET TEAM FROM www.etsy.com IS DOING ..... AN AUCTION FOR A CAUSE OCT. 20TH THRU OCT. 30TH 2008

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber.etsy.com - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable.etsy.com - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus.etsy.com - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread

The EcoEtsy Street Team from http://www.etsy.com/ and http://www.ecoetsy.com/ and http://www.ecoetsy.blogspot.com/ has come together to donate a basket of Eco-minded goodies to be auctioned off for the benefit of the Nature Conservancy. This auction is entirely a non-profit event, created by the members of EcoEtsy (http://www.ecoetsy.com/) in order to promote handmade,eco-friendly goods and to support a worthy organization.

About the Auction

The benefit auction started preparations in the spring of 2008, and each participant that donated to the auction basket were required to follow a set of rules for their items:

● Every item is Eco-related in some way. These include repurposed, recycled, up-cycled,and eco-friendly products.
● Every item is handmade.
● Every item includes a small card that describes the item and how it relates to ecopractices.
More than 60 individual items are contained in this beautiful, eco-friendly auction handcrafted by people who care about nature and our environment. The total of all donations is valued at more than $300 retail.

Auction Details

Donation photographs will be available beginning October 20, the first day of the auction.These photographs can be accessed by viewing the album at http://ecoetsyauction.myphotoalbum.com/

Auction Start Date: October 20th, 2008

Auction End Date: October 30th, 2008

This auction is open to US residents only. This is to prevent any legal issues as well as preventshipping issues that may arise due to regulations that other countries have.

Bidding: Bids may be placed on the auction basket by emailing promo@ecoetsy.com. Updates will be announced regularly on the EcoEtsy blog (http://ecoetsy.blogspot.com/) with the highest bidding amount.

Please note that the monies raised will also be used to ship the donation basket to the winner.

The highest bid placed by 9 PM MST (-7 GMT) will be awarded. The auction basket will be shipped within one week of bid payment receipt – payment details will be sent to the winnerafter the auction via email.

About EcoEtsy

Eco Etsy is a group of like-minded people who are coming together to spread the word about reducing, reusing, and recycling. We concentrate on educating other Etsyians to be more aware of the waste we create when packaging our items, and therefore offer tips and tricks to help other members create a greener way of life in their shops and in their personal lives. EcoEtsy is open to all Etsy sellers who want to waste less in the process of creating, selling, packaging and shipping and to encourage buyers to do their part as well. Please feel free to learn more about EcoEtsy and the products we create, the tips we produce, and the efforts we are involved in byvisiting the following websites:

Eco Etsy Website: http://www.ecoetsy.com/

Eco Etsy Blog: http://www.ecoetsy.blogspot.com/

Street Team Page: http://team.etsy.com/profilest/eco.shtml

About The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy's mission is to preserve the plants, animals and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To learn more about The Nature Conservancy, please visit http://www.nature.org/

Since their founding in 1951:
● They've protected more than 117 million acres of land and 5,000 miles of riversworldwide – operating more than 100 marine conservation projects globally.
● They work in all 50 states and more than 30 countries – protecting habitats fromgrasslands to coral reefs, from Australia to Alaska to Zambia.
● They address threats to conservation involving climate change, fire, fresh water, forests,invasive species, and marine ecosystems.

I HAVE DONATED A REUSABLE BAG I CROCHETED WITH "RESCUED" OR "RECLAIMED" CROCHET THREAD FOR THIS AUCTION FOR A CAUSE -- I ALSO VOTED FOR THE NATURE CONSERVANCY IN THE POLL TO DETERMINE WHO THE DONATION WOULD GO TO. THE NATURE CONSERVANCY IS SO AMAZING IN THE PROJECTS THEY SUPPORT, ORGANIZE, FUND AND INSPIRE -- ALL OVER OUR PLANET!!

CHECK HERE OR ON ONE OF ECOETSY'S ONLINE LOCATIONS FOR WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH OUR AUCTION!!

Ruth

CARBON OFFSETS - AN ARTICLE ON THE NATURE CONSERVANCY WEBSITE

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread


In an earlier post, I mentioned "Biodiversity Offsets".

Well, there are also "Carbon Offsets" --this is where to offset something you do in your life that puts a lot of carbon in the atmosphere (like take a long airline flight which puts a lot of carbon in the atmosphere and adds to greenhouse gases), you make a donation to something to offset that that is supposed to remove the carbon from the atmosphere.

The question is -- is this working and how can you make sure your carbon offset donation will actually do that - offset the carbon?

Well, The Nature Conservancy has some help on this!!

An article on their website answers some key questions on this issue and gives some good advice on how to make sure you are donating to something that will really be a carbon offset.

They have a huge website, so here is the direct link to the article:

http://support.nature.org/site/PageServer?pagename=asktheconservationist_200806&JServSessionIdr012=3q075ukq61.app43a

Good reading - I was glad I found it!! Bill Stanley has some very useful information!

I think carbon offsets are really good things and can be really important.

Speaking of which -- Plant A Billion Trees in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil could use some more donations. Once those trees are planted and as long as they take hold -- I believe they are there to stay!!

Here's to the trees!!

Ruth

A RIPARIAN FOREST PRESERVED -- KERN RIVER PRESERVE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Internet Shop of Handmade Items
RSS Designs Wearable - Internet Shop of Wearable Items
RSS Crochet Thread Plus - Internet Shop of Crochet Thread


I love forests - all kinds of forests, but actually my favorites are riparian forests -- forests along the rivers and creeks. Not sure why - they just are.

The first one I "fell in love with" was what I knew as the Biological Reserve at "Allerton" - an Illinois Plains Forest along the Sangamon River in Central Illinois. I discovered somewhere around 10 years ago that much of it is a restored forest with a certain area of it having been virgin Illinois plains forest (hard to believe - it is naturally restored and all of it looked virgin to me). I went there while I was in college at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign - and for years afterwards while I lived in the midwest. During the quiet, private times that I had to wander through this small biological preserve of a woodland, I learned what a real forest was. http://www.continuinged.uiuc.edu/oce-sites/allerton/history.cfm

It was in the late 1980's, when I lived in Southern California, that I discovered the Conservancy Preserves of The Nature Conservancy - I bought one of their books, "California Wild Lands, A Guide To The Nature Conservancy Preserves" by Dwight Holing.

I looked in the book for forests -- much to my own pleasure I found out about the Kern River Preserve, a preserved riparian forest, near Walker Pass in Southern California, at the southern end of the Sierra Nevada. I stopped by there in my travelings a couple of times.

Recently, being concerned about the various fires that have been all over California the last few weeks -- and seeing that one was right in the area of the Kern River Preserve, I decided to look it up on the Internet. I had know it as a Nature Conservancy Preserve -- over the years it had been taken over by Audubon and is now run and managed by Audubon California (http://kern.audubon.org/). I was glad to read the article on their website - that as of sunset July 6th, the fire that threatens the area has been kept out of the riparian forest (http://kern.audubon.org/kelso_creek_sanctuary.htm). With the years and years of restoration and protection that has been done and the significance of this area as a wildlife corridor -- and this specific riparian forest for birds, reptiles and amphibians -- I am so glad that at least so far it has been protected.

I had read in Dwight Holing's book (copyright 1988) years ago about how in the 1800's, "...800,000 acres of forest lined the rivers that drained the Sierra Nevada. Today, only two percent of these woodlands survive, a total of about 12,000 acres. As the riparian habitat has dwindled, so have wildlife populations."

It makes me sad -- riparian forests are such a beautiful part of the "web of life".

The "Today" in his book was when he wrote it -- about 20 years ago. I am not sure how much is left now.

But a HUGE THANK YOU to The Naure Conservancy for first preserving it -- and AUDUBON CALIFORNIA for continuing the management of it.

Have you ever been in a riparian forest? Kern River Preserve is open dawn to dusk every day of the year. Maybe you want to go take a look and see what we need to preserve.

Ruth

A WAY TO DO PICTURES/IMAGES/DESIGNS IN CROCHET -- FILET CROCHET

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Get My Handmade on Etsy or Bonanza - or Privately

"Mountain Cabin" - Filet Crochet Image Art Decor

FILET CROCHET --


I discovered Filet Crochet in 2003. I loved it -- I had found a way to do designs, even pictures and words - and a combination of any of them - in crochet thread - or yarn, I guess, but yarn is rather bulky and I do colorwork crochet mostly in yarn (I will discuss colorwork crochet later sometime).


The basic Filet Crochet of blocks and open meshes is actually quite easy. There are more advanced patterns with some variations in stitches and shapes.


You can follow charts or instructions written by others - or using graph paper or something similar on a computer, you can design your own charts for Filet Crochet.


Following are a few examples of some of the Filet Crochet I have done since 2003.

The picture at the Top is from a pattern in a Magic Crochet magazine - I loved it, because it reminds me of being in the mountains in a cabin. I call it "Mountain Cabin" -- it has some more advanced stitches in it - like popcorn blocks and half blocks - that give it texture and the picture a more artistic design. The edging I got out of a book of handkerchief edgings -- I thought it was nice for this as it looks like a picture frame around the filet crochet doily.


This first picture below is of what I called a "Daffodil Bouquet". It is four motifs of a daffodil in yellow - the motif is a design by Elizabeth Hiddleson in one of her books that I have. The edging is my own - the outside edging is done in contrasting white. It sold on eBay.






Last year for the Fourth of July, I decided to do something different - so using some pictures I have, I did a chart of a Flag Bearer on a horse carrying the Stars and Stripes - I crocheted it in white and added a blue, red & white border. It also sold on eBay.



















This one below is a new one in my shop -- it is Filet Crochet In The Round - which is a little different than the basic filet crochet in rows. It is still based on blocks and open meshes, but it is designed to be done in rounds - and you have a round doily or centerpiece as a result. This one is Grape Clusters with Leaves. The center is 8 grape clusters in a ring, which I did in a violet-lavender -- then around that is a ring of leaves in light green. I finished it off with an edging in lavender with wood beads in a dark natural finish. The 3 pictures below show the doily in full and then the detail of the grape clusters and then the leaves - just to give you an idea of one thing you can do with filet crochet.

[Update: the "Grape Clusters with Leaves Small Tablecloth" Sold in 2014 on Artfire since this article was written!!]






This one is a closeup of the grape cluster.







This picture is a closeup of the leaves.






The following is another filet crochet doily I have designed. Currently, it is not up for sale anywhere, though it has been in the past. I like bears, so I decided to do a filet crochet design of a bear head. When I put it up for sale again, it will be for a donation to The Nature Conservancy, which has conservancy preserves where bear habitat is protected -- including one in Montana that has Grizzly Bears there!!! The Nature Conservancy can be found at http://www.nature.org/.

[Update - this one Sold on Etsy in 2011.]








I hope you have enjoyed seeing these pictures of a few of the filet crochet things I have done since 2003.


If you can draw at all - or even copy pictures and want to do a chart of blocks and meshes to make your own filet crochet image -- take out a piece of graph paper and do it!! There are a number of books about it on amazon.com -- the one I like is The Filet Crochet Book by Chris Rankin.


Ruth