The lodge pole pine, also known as the Pinus Contorta or Shore Pine, is a common tree in western North America. Like all pines it is an evergreen tree. The lodge pole pine is a very popular species that humans have numerous uses for.
Today this species is in a very high demand. Because of this high demand the trees are heavily farmed throughout the province of British Colombia. The same species of trees are grown, harvested, and then re-planted. This is a significant example of Industrial agriculture because it is an industrialized production of this tree (or crop) to meet the high demand of our ever growing population for this specific type of wood. It overlooks the well being and balance of forest ecosystems and completely eliminates the concept of biodiversity. Industrial agriculture has many negative consequences. For example, the industrial agriculture of the lodge pole pine has resulted in a lack of biodiversity, and a therefore vulnerability to pests. The Mountain Pine beetle, also known as the Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins has posed as a huge threat to this type of tree. The beetle is about the size of a grain of rice, is dark colored, and lives most of its life in trees. Their lives are shorter than a year and they lay eggs in trees and over time they hinder the tees ability to draw water and nutrients. Numerous epidemics have occurred over time and this species cause mortality of large numbers of trees. Major outbreaks have occurred in southwestern Alberta in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Outbreaks have also consistently occurred in British Colombia over the last several decades.
The beetles have destroyed millions of pine trees (over 400 square kilometres) leaving once forested areas barren. At the current rate, 80% of mature pine trees in B.C. will be dead by 2013. The Lodge pole pine, B.C.'s most commercially harvested tree, as stated above, has been especially targeted which has led to millions of dollars in losses. The trees are being so dramatically affected because they are all the exact same. There is no diversity and therefore the beetle affects the species of trees in all the same way, which results in enormous epidemics with devastating results. What is the solution to this problem? Simple, it’s Sustainable agriculture over Industrial Agriculture. Sustainable agriculture refers to the ability of a farm to produce product indefinitely, without causing irreversible damage to ecosystem health. Meaning instead of farming and re-farming the exact same tree over and over again for human use, farmers should attempt to plant numerous diverse species in order to maintain balanced ecosystems in forests. This would result in the many unique trees that would most likely be able to resist the negative effects of the mountain pine beetle.
In conclusion, In order to have a prosperous future involving nature and our environment we need to make the correct choice, which is sustainable over industrial.
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