Letters to the Editors: Autumn 2009
Paddling through History
To the Editors:
Ever notice how letters griping about one thing or another begin with “You’re doing a great job with the magazine,” followed by: “but…”
If I had to dump all but one of my periodicals, and that’s plenty, the survivor would be Northern Woodlands. I’d put your magazine on the must-read list for anyone who lives in, works in, cares about, or just visits northern New England. It has become the magazine I simply cannot do without.
I particularly enjoyed your last issue’s piece on the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, which I had a very small part in helping create. There are, of course, some “buts.” Rogers’ Rangers raided against the village of St. Francis and the French, not against the British. And Benedict Arnold’s expeditionary army went up through uncharted territory in Maine to attack Quebec and retreated down through northern New York and Vermont, not Maine. I went on the reenactment in 1975 and gained a whole new appreciation for Arnold’s epic effort, often compared to Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps. Too bad he didn’t stay on our side.
The canoe trail is a wonderful thing, and is already creating a noticeable increase in river and stream traffic up here. It bears noting, however, that not all is flat, meandering, easy, and idyllic. On many, if not most tributaries, Indians eschewed canoe travel for footpaths because it was just too rocky, shallow, or steep to travel by canoe, and so today’s canoe travelers, with the added impediment of dams (as the NFCT literature indeed makes plain) had better be prepared for a good deal of dragging, portaging, and driving short distances around the toughest spots.
John Harrigan, Colebrook, New Hampshire
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Paddling through History
To the Editors:
As always, Northern Woodlands is a joy to receive and Dirk Van Susteren’s article on the Northern Forest Canoe Trail in the Summer ’09 edition added to the interest and pleasure of the reading.
However, I must correct his statement that Benedict Arnold, following his attack on Quebec, “then fled down rivers in what was to become Maine.” First, Arnold never fled from any field of battle, and second, his highly successful retreat from Quebec was made. through what is today New York and Vermont, not Maine.
The facts are that had Congress resupplied and reinforced Arnold from Montreal, as it could well have done, Quebec would almost certainly have fallen. The consequence of that could have been a United States of America embodying the whole of North America north of Mexico. Then, Arnold’s retreat in the spring and summer of 1776 up the Richelieu River to Lake Champlain was so well conceived and aggressively led that the otherwise overwhelming British army under Sir Guy Carleton returned to Canada with considerable losses of men, material, and prestige, and nothing to show for it. On the contrary, the Americans gained a crucial year of respite on their northern front.
The contest was resumed the following summer and culminated in the Battle of Saratoga. It is arguable that had Arnold not been there with his dash, flair, and ability to rouse men, that contest would have been lost, the Declaration of Independence would have been but a footnote in British history, and the whole of North America north of Mexico called Canada.
Along with George Washington, Arnold should be remembered as being the American soldier (and naval strategist) most responsible for enabling the ultimate victory of the American cause. Unfortunately, he is remembered for something else, but only because of who he was, not what he was.
David Marler, Knowlton, Quebec
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Moving Firewood
To the Editors:
While building trails for a new campground, I was thinking how the campground owner might reduce the risk of campers introducing invasive insect pests into his presently healthy woods. Since insect pests often travel in firewood, I suggested that he offer campers free firewood cut from trees right on his own property.
Maybe we should institute free firewood policies in campgrounds region wide to make thoughtless firewood transport by campers less appealing. Campground fees could be raised to compensate.
It gives me chills to think of the devastation that could be caused by invasive insect pests like the Asian longhorn beetle and the emerald ash borer.
Gerry Hawkes, Woodstock, Vermont
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How to Move a Snapping Turtle
To the Editors:
I truly enjoy this magazine and especially look forward to the “look at the seasons” section. It may be too late for this summer’s snapping turtles, but you absolutely do not pick up snapping turtles by the tail! You can injure their spine. There are classes you can go to and learn how to properly help a turtle across the road. Snapping turtles have a great “handle” called the back end of their shell. On the underside of the shell, there is a lip you can put both hands on, palms up. Snappers can be heavy, so don’t overestimate the strength of your hands and accidentally drop them. Cross the road, holding the turtle out in front of you, because it might poo on you. Please, a reminder to all, do not run over turtles, they are precious living dinosaurs.
Virginia Campbell, Brooklin, Maine
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Another View on Biomass Users
To the Editors:
Northern Woodlands frequently addresses the public’s growing interest in biomass energy, including the Summer 2009 “Another View” by New England Wood Pellet general manager, Charlie Niebling. In his piece, Niebling encourages the use of woody biomass for heating while disparaging biomass electric production.
Proponents of biomass energy sometimes fail to include all the “costs” in terms of efficiency, including wood harvest, transport, chipping, grinding, drying, pelletizing, bagging, distribution to retailers, redistribution to customers, and final transport to the point of consumption. When we consider the distribution of energy to the consumer, sending it via copper cable beats a truck any day.
Many proponents of biomass for heating fail to completely address emissions. There is an environmental cost associated with the fact that residential and small commercial biomass heat users do not meet the stringent air quality standards required by commercial biomass electric producers. None of us incorporates electrostatic precipitators or flue gas recirculation on our home heaters.
In Vermont, biomass electric producers abide by stringent harvesting standards promulgated by the Vermont Public Service Board, including review of harvest plans by the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife. Unfortunately, thermal users have not shown much interest in meeting similar standards.
There has been little or no new wood harvesting/hauling capacity created as a result of the biomass heating market. Rather, new thermal users tap into the biomass supply infrastructure that is already in place thanks to the year-round demand of large users (electrical or pulp) of low-grade wood. It is doubtful the seasonal thermal folks will have much luck maintaining their wood supply system without a few large year-round biomass users in the mix.
Finally, the public and the resource are ill-served when one class of biomass users attempts to strengthen its market position at the expense of others. There is still plenty of low-grade wood needing a market. We should focus on working together to reduce foreign oil use, cut greenhouse gases, and foster U.S. energy independence.
Bill Kropelin, Burlington, Vermont
Bill Kropelin is the chief forester for Burlington Electric’s McNeil Station.
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Hurricane of 1938
To the Editors:
“Wind, Fire, Ice, and Insects” is a most interesting article in the recent Northern Woodlands. I learned much, including the word derechos.
I do have a question about the track of the 1938 hurricane, as shown on page 34. I was a teenager, living just outside Brockton, Massachusetts. Southeastern Massachusetts, especially Cape Cod, certainly suffered severe damage and loss of life. The track of the 1938 hurricane on page 34 passes through western Massachusetts, far removed from our winds and rain. This surprises me, in light of the damage we experienced.
I would really appreciate an explanation of our experience compared with the track in your graphics. Were we only on the fringes?
Jean Roberts, Orono, Maine
We asked Robert Bryan to respond:
Yes, I agree that if you lived in eastern Massachusetts in 1938, you would think that the map on page 34 was more than a little off. My mother told me stories of the ’38 hurricane when it hit Westport, Massachusetts, which is on the coast near the Rhode Island border and south of where you were living in Brockton. Dozens of houses were wiped off the beach and many others damaged. Seventy years later, it remains the benchmark that locals use to rank all other hurricanes that hit the coast in that region.
The map only shows the center line of the hurricane’s track, the route that the eye of the storm followed. The eye itself was reported to be about 50 miles across, and even an average-sized hurricane can affect an area hundreds of miles across. The ’38 hurricane caused severe damage across most of New England and eastern New York. Atlantic hurricanes heading north have their strongest winds on the east side, so your experience makes sense given the magnitude of the storm and the center line of its track. I found one reference to sustained winds of over 120 mph and gusts to 186 mph at the Blue Hills (MA) observatory, which is not far from Brockton.
Thanks for sharing some history from 1938.
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Maple Harvest
To the Editors:
I am glad to see, in the Summer 2009 issue, that Chuck Wooster did some analysis of trends in mill prices. In that piece, he wondered about the trends in harvest volume of red maple versus sugar maple. Since Vermont does keep track of annual harvest, I pulled out some numbers from their data and created the attached spreadsheet. Indeed, the proportion of red maple harvested has increased relative to sugar maple since around 1994. The ratio has also become much more volatile. I don’t know whether that’s a function of the market or just a reporting anomaly. But since the state has been doing this survey for decades, it’s probably the market. Unfortunately, Vermont Extension does not report on red maple in its quarterly stumpage price report, so there is no comparable price series. Maine does both an annual harvest report and stumpage price report including red maple but I don’t have their harvest info on my computer or in my library.
But the data in Vermont and your mill prices seems to show that when the market signals for more volume it is forthcoming.
Keep up the interesting work.
Paul Sendak, Barrington, New Hampshire
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Two Kinds of Carbon
To the Editors:
Regarding the letter to the editor from Pete Bennett and Chuck Wooster’s response in the Summer 2009 issue, I would like to word a response a little differently in the hope that more people can understand the issue. It so happens I labored over the same question in my dealings with one of the members of an environmental group that I belong to.
The concept that I tried to put forward, as perhaps more understandable, is that people should recognize that there are essentially two “locations” for all the carbon that is on our planet. One location is the carbon that is in circulation. This will be as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, or dissolved in sea water (also as carbonate slats), and what is called fixed carbon, the carbon contents of plants and animals.
The other location is what is referred to as fossilized carbon: coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossilized carbon is not in circulation. The problem is that when fossilized carbon is burned, it is added to the carbon in circulation. The extension of this problem is that there are precious few places on our planet where carbon in circulation is being converted back to a fossilized form. In any case, millennia are required to accomplish the feat. The increase of carbon in circulation is undeniable both from analysis of ice cores and actual measurements of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere over the past several generations.
Predictions about the future vis-à-vis global warming are all over the place, but one of the more scary ones is that the present carbon in circulation will continue to warm the earth for an additional 10 to 15 years even if all conversion of fossilized carbon to carbon in circulation came to a full stop now. The consequence of this would be that methane hydrates, presently stabilized in arctic tundra, will be released and become part of the carbon in circulation, thus perpetuating the greenhouse effect and there’s nothing we can do about it. It’s called a tipping point, but as I said, one of the more scary predictions.
Russ Seaman, Rougemont, North Carolina
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Poison Plants on Other Shores
To the Editors:
Your article about poisonous plants in the summer issue was really interesting. We don’t have any of those nasty Toxicodendrons here in Wales. We do have wild parsnip (a common and well-behaved plant in calcareous meadows in southern England), but I didn’t know that it caused a rash. Giant hogweed is a serious problem plant here, and great efforts are made to eradicate it.
The worst poisonous plant I have encountered was the stinging tree in the rainforest of Northern Australia. Really terrible. People have to be put on painkillers or hospitalized if they touch it. Fortunately, my friend who lives there warned me about it so I did not touch it. She had once touched it by accident while out hiking in the forest, and had to be taken to hospital.
Anyway, thank you for an excellent magazine.
Photo by Alan Gillanders, www.alanswildlifetours.com.au
Marc Carlton, Monmouthshire, Wales
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