Lake Trout

The lake trout can be found all over America, but originates in New England, Great Lakes, and in Alaska. Lake trout are mostly stocked as a sport fish, but was also stocked to restore populations within its native range that had been decimated by the sea lamprey. The lake trout often will lead to the demise of other trout species where it is introduced. For example, when the lake trout was introduced into lake Tahoe, it led to the elimination of the Lahontan cutthroat (a fish native to the lake). Lake trout can grow `up to 4 feet in length and weigh on average 2 – 12 pounds. One of the biggest lake trout was caught in Michigan, weighing in at 65 pounds. Because these fish are so big, they will eat many of the other fish that are in the lake. There is not really anything being done to reduce the impact of the lake trout. Since it is a popular game fish, people do not want the population of the lake trout reduced, even at the cost of other fish.

http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?SpeciesID=942

Deforestation

Deforestation is clearing earths forest on a massive scale, resulting in a damage to the quality of land. Today, forests cover about 30% of the worlds land area, but swaths the size of Panama (29,762 square miles) are lost each and every year. At this rate, it is possible that there will be no rain forest left in 100 years due to deforestation. Forests are cut down for a variety of reasons, but most are related to money or the need to provide for there families. The biggest driver of deforestation is agriculture. Farmers will clear some of the forest so  they have more room to plant crops and more room for there livestock. Often many small farmers will clear a few acres to feed their families by cutting down trees and burning them in a process known as “slash and burn” agriculture. Loggers who cut down trees for things such as paper and wood products cut down thousands of trees each year. Loggers, some who are working illegally, also build roads deep into the forest for there machinery, which will lead to further deforestation. The most dramatic impact of deforestation is on the millions of species that live in these forests. Many animals will die because there habitat has been completely destroyed. Deforestation also plays a role in climate change. Forest soils are moist, but without tree canopies the soil will quickly dry out. Trees also help perpetuate the water cycle by returning water vapor back into the atmosphere. Without trees to fill these roles, many former forest lands can quickly become barren deserts.

Citation:
http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation-overview.html

Logging in the United States

     Commercial logging has been a problem in the United States for years. In the 1600s, nearly half of the United States was forest (about 1 billion acres). As shown in figure 3.2 below, the forests in the United states have been dwindling down due to deforestation since the mid 1800s, and still are to this day. In 2005 the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Global Forest Resources Assessment ranked the United States 7th highest country losing its old forest growth. The United States is the world’s leading producer and consumer of forest products and accounts for about one-fourth of the world’s production and consumption. The United States is also the world’s largest producer of softwood and hardwood lumber. In 1996, total annual sales for commercial (nonfederal) timber and nontimber forest products was approximately $3.8 billion. But its not just commercial logging that is the issue. The United States is trying to stop people from logging illegally. The U.S. Forest Service states that illegal logging is the biggest problem with deforestation because it is nearly impossible to monitor and stop. If the United States continues to let commercial loggers and illegal loggers destroy our forest at this rate, then it will not be long before there are no forests left.



Citations:

http://www.scudderandhedrick.net/articles/logging-dangers/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deforestation_in_the_United_States
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://farm3.static.flickr.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTuPHt4TYSw