EP-06507 1995

To Order

Materials and the Environment: Wood as a Global Resource

CHAPTER 3

Perceptions and Reality

Key Points
	Most of us have some misperceptions about American forests and about the relative environmental impacts of using wood and other materials.
	These misperceptions can cause us to form inappropriate opinions and attitudes about materials choices.
	We can improve our ability to make environmentally sound decisions by minimizing our misperceptions. We can critically examine the way information is presented by special interest groups. We can find out the facts and we can act on them responsibly.

Forests are among America's most valuable resources. They provide habitat for wildlife, beautiful vistas, protection for lakes and streams, and recreational opportunities. They also are the source of a raw material - wood - that is not only versatile (it can do everything from support tall buildings to wipe a baby's tear) but also renewable.

Unfortunately, many of us have misperceptions about the status of America's forests and about the relative soundness of using wood as a raw material. These misperceptions can cause us to form opinions and to support public policies that on the surface seem best for the environment, but in reality are not.

The following 26-item questionnaire is designed to give participants an opportunity to look at their own assumptions about environmental matters related to forests and forest management. By completing and discussing the questionnaire, participants can develop a more knowledgeable foundation for making personal materials choices and for supporting public policy that is environmentally sound on a long-term, global scale.

Have participants fill in their responses before viewing the video. Then reserve time afterward to go over the correct answers and explanations together.

Impact Insights

To a certain extent, comparing the environmental impact of various materials is like comparing apples and oranges. Not only are the impacts felt in different places, they also occur at different stages of the path from raw material to finished product. However, the following general statements can be made.

Brick. Brick production begins with concentrated mining, which has a high impact on a relatively small site. It takes a lot of energy to fire bricks, so the environmental cost of producing needed energy is a strong factor here.

Concrete. Mining the limestone used to make concrete has an intensive impact on a relatively small area. But, most significantly, it takes substantial energy to process the limestone into cement, the key ingredient of concrete.

Aluminum. Mining affects a relatively small area, but the impacts are intensive and long-lasting. Energy demand for mining, reducing ores, and fabricating products is high.

Steel. Similar to aluminum. In some areas of the world, such as the Carajas region of Brazil, energy for processing iron ore is provided by charcoal. The result is that the production of steel is a significant cause of tropical deforestation in some parts of the world.

Wood. Gathering wood involves a relatively short-term impact, but on a relatively large area. The resource is renewable. Energy inputs for processing are relatively low.

Plastic. Mining petroleum, the material from which plastics are made, has large effects on small areas. Transportation and refining have high environmental impacts. Substantial energy is needed to synthesize final materials.

Materials and the Environment: Wood as a Global Resource

Perceptions and Reality Quiz

Circle your answer or write it in where appropriate.

1.	Please circle all those items below that describe yourself:
	a.	Have strong interest in helping to solve environmental problems.
	b.	Believe the world environmental situation is hopeless.
	c.	Enjoy weekend trips to forest or lake regions.
	d.	Own a cabin or would like to.
	e.	Own a home or would like to someday.
	f.	Own or have access to a car. Drive about _______miles a year.
	g.	Carpool regularly.
	h.	Sleep on a waterbed.
	i.	Participate in local recycling programs.
	j.	Write on both sides of paper.
	k.	Went to a warmer climate last winter (or plan to this year).
	l.	Have been abroad.
	m.	Have visited South America, Africa, or Asia.
2.	I could readily reduce my consumption of materials (durable and non-durable goods) by:
	a.	5 percent
	b.	10 percent
	c.	20 percent
	d.	30 percent
	e.	50 percent
3.	I believe that reduction of per capita consumption of durable and non-durable goods in the United States by ___ percent is a realistic possibility.
	a.	5 percent
	b.	10 percent
	c.	20 percent
	d.	30 percent
	e.	50 percent
4.	The most serious environmental problem facing the world today is:





5.	True or False
	The U.S. is a net exporter of most raw materials used by industry today.
6.	True or False
	The raw material that is used in the greatest quantity in the United States today, and which accounts for almost one-third (by weight) of the total raw materials used annually, is steel.
7.	True or False
	The world is rapidly running out of many important minerals.
8.	The building material that can be produced with the least impact on the environment is:
	a.	brick
	b.	concrete
	c.	aluminum
	d.	steel
	e.	wood
	f.	plastic
9.	True or False
	More extensive recycling of paper could reduce harvesting of forests in the United States by 60 percent or more.
10.	In 1995, the percent of annual paper production in the United States that is produced from recycled paper is:
	a.	2.0 percent
	b.	6.1 percent
	c.	12.9 percent
	d.	19.8 percent
	e.	24.3 percent
	f.	31.2 percent
11.	True or False
	The U.S. is the world leader in seeking to improve the global environment.
12.	The population of the world is currently about:
	a.	3.4 billion
	b.	5.7 billion
	c.	8.7 billion
	d.	9.6 billion
	e.	10.1 billion
13.	The population of the world is currently increasing at a rate of 10,000 people per
	a.	week
	b.	day
	c.	hour
	d.	minute
	e.	second
14.	True or False
	U.S. population growth is near zero, with the population expected to stabilize by about 2025.
15.	True or False
	Through heavy government intervention, China's population has stopped growing and is now actually declining.
16.	The number one cause of tropical deforestation worldwide is:
	a.	commercial logging
	b.	wildfire
	c.	clearing of lands for agricultural use
	d.	gathering of fuelwood
17.	At current rates of deforestation, most of the moist tropical forests will disappear from the face of the earth by about:
	a.	2010
	b.	2025
	c.	2050
	d.	2075
	e.	2140
18.	The area covered by forests in the United States today is approximately ___ of the forested area that existed in 1600.
	a.	66 percent
	b.	50 percent
	c.	33 percent
	d.	25 percent
	e.	17 percent
19.	Which of the following statements most accurately describes U.S. forests:
	a.	forest harvest exceeds net growth by 8 percent.
	b.	forest harvest exceeds net growth by 3 percent.
	c.	forest harvest roughly equals net growth.
	d.	net forest growth exceeds harvest by 19 percent.
	e.	net forest growth exceeds harvest by 31 percent.
20.	True or False
	At current rates of deforestation, 40 percent of current forests in the United States will be lost by the middle of the next century.
21.	Currently ___ percent of the federally owned National Forest land base is in use classifications that prohibit timber harvesting.
	a.	10
	b.	20
	c.	30
	d.	45
	e.	60
	f.	70
22.	In the United States today, lands designated as wilderness comprise about ______ percent of the total forested area in the country.
	a.	1.1
	b.	2.7
	c.	4.2
	d.	13.0
	e.	17.5
23.	True or False
	Under current law, forest harvesting is allowed within wilderness areas.
24.	The combined acreage of wilderness areas, national parks, wildlife refuges, and other parks and preserves now comprises _____ percent of the total land area of the United States.
	a.	0.2
	b.	2.1
	c.	4.9
	d.	8.7
	e.	10.6
	f.	14.4
25.	True or False
	Populations of elk, pronghorn antelope, and wild turkey have declined significantly in the United States over the past 50 years.
26.	The use of forest products in the United States:
	a.	has declined significantly since 1960.
	b.	has remained at about the same level for the last 50 years.
	c.	is growing slowly as the population increases.
	d.	has increased on a per capita basis by more than 30 percent since 1970.

Questionnaire Answers

Correct answers to the questionnaire are given below. In addition, for each question we have described responses given in 1993 by nearly 2,000 students at 11 major universities around the United States. (A few of the questions included here were not part of this earlier survey but included in a 1994 survey of 40 students at the University of Minnesota. Results are given as noted for this smaller group.) You may wish to share some of these results with your participants. Even though the students who completed the questionnaire were not randomly selected (and thus cannot be said to represent college students in general), survey responses provide a fascinating indication of how many of us are misinformed about materials use, the environment, and American forestry.

Opinion question. In the college survey, 75 percent of respondents indicated they had a "strong interest in helping to solve environmental problems." Some 93 percent noted they would like to own a home someday, and 82 percent would like to own a cabin. In other words, respondents' dreams include the consumption of large quantities of basic raw materials.

2/3.

Opinion questions. Interestingly, some 40 percent of respondents in earlier surveys thought U.S. per capita consumption could be reduced more than they could reduce their individual consumption.

Opinion question. For college students, pollution topped the list (20 percent), with overpopulation (17 percent), deforestation (14 percent), waste/ garbage (8 percent) and global warming/ozone depletion (7 percent) also mentioned.

False. U.S. industry imports most categories of raw materials it uses, sometimes by a substantial margin. A full 50 percent of college students surveyed were unaware of this.

False. Wood is by far the raw material used in greatest quantity in the United States today. In fact, the weight of wood used each year is roughly equivalent to the combined weight of all metals, plastics, and portland cement consumed. Fifty-two percent of the college students got this right.

False. Though some readily accessible reserves are being used up, it is unlikely that the earth will ever "run out" of most minerals. What is true, however, is that we have to search harder for ores of declining quality. The energy use and environmental impacts of gathering and processing ore are likely to increase. Some 78 percent of college students answered this question incorrectly.

Half of all college students surveyed were unaware that the United States imports most of the raw material it uses.

(e) All options have environmental impacts. In general, however, environmental risks of transportation and energy inputs needed to make products are lower for agricultural and wood fibers than for metals, cements, and plastics. Of the college students surveyed, only 33 percent marked "wood."

False. In 1992 the paper industry already was recycling 31.2 percent of all wastepaper. Industry experts predict that new technologies will permit up to a 65 percent wastepaper utilization rate in the next 20 to 25 years. However, because a) fibers degrade as they are recycled, b) only 43 percent of the total wood harvest goes into paper and other fiber products, and c) population will increase, the most that timber harvest could be reduced by paper recycling would be about 15 to 20 percent - assuming that per capita consumption of paper stays constant. Only 19 percent of college respondents answered this question correctly.

10.

(f) Nearly three-quarters of the college respondents thought the figure was 12.9 percent or less.

"It ain't the things you don't

know what gets you into

trouble; it's the things you know

for sure that just ain't so."

-Folk Wisdom

11.

Debatable. While the United States has done much to improve the environment, we still produce a disproportionate amount of total global pollution. We also are the leading per capita consumer of most raw materials, including energy. Some 39 percent of college students marked this statement "true."

12.

(b) Just over half the college respondents accurately estimated world population (the correct answer has been adjusted over time for population growth; 5.7 billion is the 1995 estimate).

13.

(c) Although this question was not included in earlier surveys, only 20 percent of a group of 40 students who responded to it in 1995 answered correctly.

"People who develop

the habit of thinking of

themselves as world citizens

are fulfulling the first requirement

of sanity in our time."

-Norman Cousins

14.

False. U.S. population is growing at 1.1 percent per year. If this rate were to be sustained, the U.S. population would double in a little over 60 years. However, the rate is declining, so it is possible that U.S. population will stabilize in the next century. The correct answer to this question was supplied by 78 percent of the student respondents.

15.

False. If China's 1994 growth rate of 1.2 percent per year were to continue, the population would double in 60 years. However, government policies discouraging large families are likely to produce a drop in growth rate in the future. Of respondents, 53 percent answered this correctly.

16.

(c) The overwhelming cause of tropical deforestation is clearing lands for agricultural use. Gathering wood for fuel is second. Commercial logging can speed the process by opening up previously inaccessible areas to settlers and has been a major contributor to deforestation in some southeast Asian nations. Most students (69 percent) answered this question correctly.

17.

Debatable. If the current estimated rate of tropical forest loss were to continue, the last of these forests would be cleared by about 2075. Other estimates of forest loss project conversion of tropical forests to other vegetation types by about 2140. Some 60 percent of previous respondents indicated a belief that tropical rain forests would be largely gone by 2025 - most likely an unduly pessimistic estimate.

18.

(a) The correct answer is 66 percent. In the more recent survey, more than two-thirds of the students estimated current forest coverage at 25 percent or less of what it was in 1600.

19.

(e) If your participants' responses parallel previous ones, this 1992 estimate will come as a big surprise. Net forest growth has exceeded harvest for decades in the United States. Yet more than half of respondents in both surveys thought that harvest exceeds net growth.

20.

False. About 4 percent of forest land was lost between 1952 and 1992, mostly to urban expansion, construction of highways, and related development. Even at this rate, only an additional 3 to 4 percent of forest land would be lost by 2040. And, if states act on recent efforts to adopt laws promoting no net loss of forest land, that figure could be even lower. Nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of the students answered this incorrectly.

More than half of all previous respondents erroneously answered that harvest exceeds net growth in U.S. forests.

21.

(f) Only 15 percent of students in the smaller survey answered this question correctly. The majority (75 percent) thought the figure was 30 percent or less.

22.

(e) The U.S. wilderness system encompasses more than 103 million acres, most of which is forested. Today, approximately 13 percent of the forested acreage in the United States is contained within wilderness areas. Of the respondents to the smaller survey, 32 percent answered correctly, 12 percent indicated a larger percentage and 56 percent marked smaller numbers.

23.

False. No harvesting is allowed in wilderness areas. Almost half (47 percent) of respondents were unaware of this.

24.

(e) Most respondents in the recent survey (78 percent) set this figure lower than it actually is. Some 12 percent answered correctly.

25.

False. Over the past half-century, populations of elk have increased about 1,100 percent; pronghorn antelope, 1,050 percent; and wild turkey, 1,900 percent. A striking 72 percent of respondents got this one wrong.

26.

(d) U.S. wood consumption is now at about 80 cubic feet per person per year. Nearly half of respondents (49 percent) answered correctly.

Talk It Over

After administering the questionnaire and going over the correct responses, give participants a chance to discuss their results.

In what areas were they most knowledgeable?

What did they find most surprising?

Did participants gain any new insights that might affect their attitudes toward the use of wood?

If responses of college students are representative of Americans in general, how might misperceptions be influencing attitudes about the use of wood as a raw material?

Might people have different attitudes if they knew the facts?

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