Vocabulary: Proforestation
Feb. 26th, 2026 06:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithAccording to Dr. Bill Moomaw who coined the term, "proforestation" means growing intact existing forests to their ecological potential.
I am all in favor of stopping deforestation and protecting extant forests. However, there's more to the definition than that.
That essentially means letting nature do its job uninterrupted by humans. It is the quickest and most reliable solution for drawing carbon out of the atmosphere. It’s based on the scientific understanding that:
* as forests grow they absorb and store increasing amounts of carbon
* when a forest is cut down it takes decades, up to a century, for it to reabsorb the carbon that was lost
* natural forests are better at removing and storing carbon than plantations.
By its very definition proforestation recognizes that managed, working forests – large-scale commercial logging, has impacts on carbon sinks. When forests are disturbed, carbon is released – whether it’s due to wildfire, insects, wind damage, conversion to agriculture or development, or logging.
The term proforestation draws our attention to existing standing forests as our best hope for pulling carbon out of the atmosphere in the shortest period of time.
This hands-off approach is more questionable. It's true that one of the best things humans can do to restore nature is just leave it the fuck alone. But that works better in some situations than others. In some contexts, just leaving it alone can make a worse mess. Generally the healthier a forest is, the more advisable it is to leave it alone. The more damaged a forest is, the more likely it would benefit from some help.
For example, a common consequence of clearcutting is doghair thickets, and they can also happen on abandoned fields. Many seedlings sprout all at once, often just one or a few species. They grow into tall, spindly trees with weak structure. Dense shade prevents any undergrowth. (A similar situation occurs with tree plantations, although the spacing is somewhat wider.) This is crappy habitat and a fire hazard, which takes a long time to fix naturally. So it's better to replant diverse species in a natural pattern. If you already have a doghair thicket, you can take different steps to address it. Is it a small patch? You could clearcut and replant with diverse species. Is it a big area? Spot treatment is probably better. You might cut and replant small patches over time. Or you could thin the trees, leaving stronger ones or more desirable species.
Here is a guide to restoring old-growth features in younger forests. This approach works very well with second-growth forests around 90+ years old, but it also helps with forests that are in the 25-75 year range too. Reintroducing lost native species is another way to help, especially when you have a remnant of old growth nearby to use as a template and seed source. Some animals, such as beavers, are ecosystem engineers who help immensely with habitat health. You don't even need a whole forest for this; you can create layers, deadwood, wildlife habitat, and other useful features in a medium or larger yard.
Sustainable forestry offers better options for use than clearcutting, although it should be noted that small clearcuts may be useful for regenerating native tree species with high light requirements. Techniques may include horse logging, coppicing, silvopasture, sugarbush cultivation, and harvesting non-timber products. Related concepts are bird-friendly coffee and bird-friendly chocolate, which promote traditional shade-growing methods that provide some wildlife habitat in addition to the cash crops. These options allow people to manage forests effectively over the long term without degrading them, while still deriving some resources. While clearcutting gives a bigger single yield, sustainable forestry produces much more material over time. Thus, sustainable forestry is another way to keep more trees standing and makes a good companion to deep wilderness reserves that are not managed. Again, some of this works on a smaller scale -- even a small yard could support a willow coppice for craft materials.
Think of permaculture zones. Zone 1 is the high-traffic, heavily managed area immediately around human structures. Zone 5 is wilderness with little or no management. In between are zones with some management such as orchards, woodlots, and restoration projects. It is important to have both places for humans to use and enjoy as well as places reserved for wildlife, creating a spectrum of uses and management levels.
Proforestry is a great concept when it comes to protecting extant forests, but it falls down when trying to mandate a hands-off approach everywhere.
I am all in favor of stopping deforestation and protecting extant forests. However, there's more to the definition than that.
That essentially means letting nature do its job uninterrupted by humans. It is the quickest and most reliable solution for drawing carbon out of the atmosphere. It’s based on the scientific understanding that:
* as forests grow they absorb and store increasing amounts of carbon
* when a forest is cut down it takes decades, up to a century, for it to reabsorb the carbon that was lost
* natural forests are better at removing and storing carbon than plantations.
By its very definition proforestation recognizes that managed, working forests – large-scale commercial logging, has impacts on carbon sinks. When forests are disturbed, carbon is released – whether it’s due to wildfire, insects, wind damage, conversion to agriculture or development, or logging.
The term proforestation draws our attention to existing standing forests as our best hope for pulling carbon out of the atmosphere in the shortest period of time.
This hands-off approach is more questionable. It's true that one of the best things humans can do to restore nature is just leave it the fuck alone. But that works better in some situations than others. In some contexts, just leaving it alone can make a worse mess. Generally the healthier a forest is, the more advisable it is to leave it alone. The more damaged a forest is, the more likely it would benefit from some help.
For example, a common consequence of clearcutting is doghair thickets, and they can also happen on abandoned fields. Many seedlings sprout all at once, often just one or a few species. They grow into tall, spindly trees with weak structure. Dense shade prevents any undergrowth. (A similar situation occurs with tree plantations, although the spacing is somewhat wider.) This is crappy habitat and a fire hazard, which takes a long time to fix naturally. So it's better to replant diverse species in a natural pattern. If you already have a doghair thicket, you can take different steps to address it. Is it a small patch? You could clearcut and replant with diverse species. Is it a big area? Spot treatment is probably better. You might cut and replant small patches over time. Or you could thin the trees, leaving stronger ones or more desirable species.
Here is a guide to restoring old-growth features in younger forests. This approach works very well with second-growth forests around 90+ years old, but it also helps with forests that are in the 25-75 year range too. Reintroducing lost native species is another way to help, especially when you have a remnant of old growth nearby to use as a template and seed source. Some animals, such as beavers, are ecosystem engineers who help immensely with habitat health. You don't even need a whole forest for this; you can create layers, deadwood, wildlife habitat, and other useful features in a medium or larger yard.
Sustainable forestry offers better options for use than clearcutting, although it should be noted that small clearcuts may be useful for regenerating native tree species with high light requirements. Techniques may include horse logging, coppicing, silvopasture, sugarbush cultivation, and harvesting non-timber products. Related concepts are bird-friendly coffee and bird-friendly chocolate, which promote traditional shade-growing methods that provide some wildlife habitat in addition to the cash crops. These options allow people to manage forests effectively over the long term without degrading them, while still deriving some resources. While clearcutting gives a bigger single yield, sustainable forestry produces much more material over time. Thus, sustainable forestry is another way to keep more trees standing and makes a good companion to deep wilderness reserves that are not managed. Again, some of this works on a smaller scale -- even a small yard could support a willow coppice for craft materials.
Think of permaculture zones. Zone 1 is the high-traffic, heavily managed area immediately around human structures. Zone 5 is wilderness with little or no management. In between are zones with some management such as orchards, woodlots, and restoration projects. It is important to have both places for humans to use and enjoy as well as places reserved for wildlife, creating a spectrum of uses and management levels.
Proforestry is a great concept when it comes to protecting extant forests, but it falls down when trying to mandate a hands-off approach everywhere.
