Forests

"A controversial plan to promote U.S. hardwood lumber is now sawdust, at least for the time being."

"Indonesia's president Joko Widodo will return early from an official trip to the United States due to a haze crisis caused by raging peat fires in the Southeast Asian country, the government said."

"Indonesia is preparing warships as a last resort to evacuate children and others suffering from smoke inhalation from slash-and-burn fires, a minister said on Friday, as the country struggles to contain fires expected to continue for weeks."

"As the world tries to shift away from fossil fuels, the energy industry is turning to what seems to be an endless supply of renewable energy: wood. In England and across Europe, wood has become the renewable of choice, with forests — many of them in the U.S. — being razed to help feed surging demand. But as this five-month Climate Central investigation reveals, renewable energy doesn’t necessarily mean clean energy. Burning trees as fuel in power plants is heating the atmosphere more quickly than coal."

"Loggers in China's southwest are destroying sanctuaries home to endangered giant pandas, environmental group Greenpeace said in a report on Wednesday, defying efforts by conservationists and tougher forestry regulations."

"JAKARTA, Indonesia – Fires started illegally to clear land for oil palm and acacia pulp plantations in Indonesia are sending thick smoke over the Southeast Asian region, making breathing painful, closing schools, canceling outdoor events and disrupting air traffic."

"A study of yellow cedars in Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve suggests that climate change calls for new models of conservation and preservation."

"Scientists are becoming increasingly concerned about the fate of the huge boreal forest that spans from Scandinavia to northern Canada. Unprecedented warming in the region is jeopardizing the future of a critical ecosystem that makes up nearly a third of the earth’s forest cover."

"Hundreds of Wyoming residents were forced to flee a wind-driven wildfire that destroyed at least 10 homes even as a separate blaze in neighboring Idaho burned several cabins to the ground and prompted dozens to evacuate, fire managers said on Monday."