WENDELL — Since the beginning of last fall, protestors of a Wendell State Forest logging project have said their efforts to save about 16 acres of old oaks are part of a bigger picture: protecting trees across the globe.
The group RESTORE: The North Woods is now widening its scope of operations by calling for an “immediate moratorium on logging on all Massachusetts state lands.” An online petition, addressed to Gov. Charlie Baker, has 697 signatures out of a minimum goal of 750.
“Our Massachusetts forests are critical in mitigating climate change, preserving native wildlife and habitats, safeguarding soils, providing clean air and water and offering public recreation,” reads the petition. “Logging our forests harms these values, while protecting our forests from cutting enhances them. Keeping our forests standing would allow them to absorb and store carbon at an increasing rate for centuries to come. This would complement the state’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
The protestors have consistently cited climate change as a reason to stop logging projects, pointing to an Oct. 7, 2018, report from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that states forest preservation is crucial to fighting climate change because of carbon sequestration.
Current or planned logging projects on state-owned land in Franklin County include Conway State Forest, Dubuque State Forest, Erving State Forest, H.O. Cook State Forest, Shutesbury State Forest, South River State Forest, Warwick State Forest and Wendell State Forest.
RESTORE and the Wendell Forest Alliance have held several rallies protesting the logging project in Wendell State Forest, where the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation is cutting about 16 acres of an 80-acre old oak stand. A petition against that logging project garnered 1,148 signatures and was delivered to Baker in October.
However, the state isn’t budging on the project. In fact, according to DCR Commissioner Leo Roy, the logging project is actually beneficial to the longterm health of the forest — and ultimately will lead to more carbon sequestration as trees are constantly reaching their peak sequestering age through forest management.
“While cutting any tree is unpopular with some of our citizens, under state law, the responsibility falls to us to manage our state forests,” Roy added. “We at the DCR are environmentalists, and we love our trees and we love our forests.”
But, the protestors say old oaks like those in Wendell are sequestering carbon now, so don’t cut them.
“Old oak trees double how much carbon they sequester every 50 years,” said Lisa Hoag at a Jan. 12 rally, referencing a carbon sequestration at Harvard Forest and 47 other indigenous forests.
Reach David McLellan at dmclellan@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 268.