Lesson: Deforestation
Unit: Direct and Indirect Effects
Materials: copies of facts (about one for every 3-4 people).
Age Level: 3rd-6th
Space Requirements: classroom
Time: 45 minutes to one hour, depending on discussion and debate length
Objectives:
Students will be aware of some of the effects of deforestation
Students will learn some of the causes of deforestation
Students will learn about Julia Butterfly Hill
Students will participate in a debate about logging
Plan: 10 minutes: deforestation discussion
Ask students why people cut down trees. (for wood, for farmland, to
build homes and buildings)
Ask students what happens to the land when we cut down all the trees.
(The soil looses its nutrients because of erosion- water washes away
the topsoil. Mudslides cause people to loose their homes. In the rainforest,
after they cut down the forest and farm on the land for a couple years,
the land looses all of it's good quality and the land can't be farmed
on any more.)
15 minutes: the facts
Tell the students the story of Julia Butterfly, making sure to tell
the side of Julia and of the lumbar company. Split the group in half,
and give one half facts from Julia's side, and the other facts from
the lumbar companies side. Give the students a chance to discuss with
others in their group about the facts on their sheet.
15-20 minutes: the debate
Have the groups sit facing each other. Tell them that this is just a
classroom debate, and they have been assigned a side, so they don't
have to agree with the side they are on. Tell them to try and think
in the perspective of the side they are on and debate to the best of
their ability. Tell them they need to listen to what others are saying
so that they can reply with a reasonable argument. (If they are having
trouble listening to each other and talking in turn, then the teacher
should act as the facilitator and designate who can talk. Each side
can take a turn.)
5-10 minutes: wrap up
Wrap up the debate and bring everyone back in to a circle. Ask students
if the debate made them think about something differently than they
had before. Make sure to allow students an opportunity to say what they
really feel about the issue, regardless of what side they were assigned.
Ask them which is more important, the preservation of ancient trees
or logging jobs?
Journal assignment: what is your opinion about the Julia butterfly story?
Who do you
support and why?
Helpful website: (the information following was gathered from this
website)
http://www.monitor.net/monitor/9912a/butterflydown.html
Story facts:
In October 1997, Headwater Forest activists heard lumbar activity in
Stafford. A man named David climbed a smaller redwood tree growing at
the side of the great redwood, later named Luna. He occupied the tree
in hopes of stopping the Pacific Lumbar company, who owned the area,
from cutting the giant redwood, that was 15ft in diameter. The lumbar
company cut down the smaller tree, leaving him no way to get down. The
even threatened to cut down Luna with David in it. A rescue party used
rock climbing gear to set up a tree-sit platform, 180 feet high in the
branches of Luna. After David, there were others who also sat in Luna
in an attempt to protect her. Julia was the last of these tree-sitters.
She went up, thinking she would spend 2-4 weeks, and ended up staying
for two years and eight days. The Pacific Lumbar company tried many
ways to get her down, including spotlights and bullhorns all night long,
and a giant helicopter hovering close blasting 100mph winds. Julia and
the lumbar company went through many negotiations. In the final agreement,
Julia concented to come down if Pacifc Lumbar company agreed to never
cut down Luna, and preserve everything within a 200-ft radius, and she
also agreed to pay Pacific Lumbar company $50,000, which they agreed
to donate to a forestry research program.
Some closing quotes from Julia Hill, for after the debate and discussion:
"I understand all of us are governed by different values. I understand
that to some people I'm just a dirty tree-hugging hippie. But I can't
imagine being able to take a chainsaw to something like this."
"I really believe that today is the day when we see the power of
love, and we see that, yes, we have hope, especially when we come together.
Each and every one of us absolutely can make a difference…but when
we come together, when we join our hearts, and our minds, and our spirits,
and our bodies, the sky's the limit. And we can do things like protect
ancient trees so they can stand for another millennium."
"What I wanted to do was get the word out. If we're going to make
change in the world, the first thing we have to do is inform each other.
The second thing we have to do is inspire each other to realize that
we can make a difference, that our actions can change the world. One
person can make a difference…"
Julia's side:
She spent two years and eight days of her life in the tree.
Luna is one of the oldest trees in California and is 15 ft in diameter.
Julia said: "I think before anyone could be allowed to cut down
something like this they should be mandated to live in it for two years."
A mudslide in 1996 destroyed or damaged seven families' homes.
The foliage and even the patterns of the bark on the trees slowed the
falling raindrops, lessening its impact on the soil. And the ferns and
underbrush help gather up the moisture. All of this reduces the risk
of erosion and mudslides.
Julia gives credit to everyone who helped in the fight to save the giant
redwoods.
Julia said: "there's no way to be in the presence of these ancient
beings and not have a new understanding of who we are as people walking
on this Earth.
Julia said: "there's something greater than a profit, and that's
life. We have to begin recognizing the intrinsic and vital value of
life that no amount of money can ever replace."
When the PL company wanted Julia to refrain from advocating tree-sitting
or from criticizing the company, she was angered, because it limited
her freedom of speech.
She was also angered that they suggested that her motivation was financial,
because she had already agreed to donate all proceeds from her book
and other events to her non-profit foundation, Circle of Life.
Julia requested that the company use the $50,000 to benefit its employees.
Pacific Lumbar company's side:
They claim that the disastrous mudslide was not was not a result of
the company's activity, instead it was due to the unusually heavy rainfall
that year.
They say that Julia is doing this for profit, as she is a frequent guest
on radio talk shows, cable TV shows, and is even writing a book on her
experience.
If they make an agreement with Julia it will look like they are giving
in to tree-sitting and others will try it. They wanted Julia to refrain
from advocating tree-sitting and from criticizing their company. They
also asked that Julia forswear any economic gain from her tree-sit.
They claimed that Julia is doing this solely for profit and fame, she
has even signed a contract to write a book about her experience.
They asked for a $50,000 fee to be paid to them in exchange for the
covenant that would restrict their use of the 200ft buffer area on their
land. They agreed to donate this money to a forestry research program.
Many families in Humboldt county are dependent on the logging company
for their income.
Many people support the company and even put an add in the paper asking
the lumbar company to not let her win.
Someone wrote a letter to the editor saying, "Julia Hill broke
the law. She should have been taken down two years ago and arrested.
Trees are crops. Get over it, Butterfly."
Julia criminally trespassed on PL land.
Everyone has at least one thing made of wood in their possession.
