Fields of Dueling Dualisms: Forest Policy

Bob Keller is a historian and editor of the photo-essay book Whatcom Places II.

Our County Council recently voted to endorse transfer of 8,400 forested acres from the state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to Whatcom County, the motion passing four-to-three after forceful arguments pro and con. This land includes portions of Lookout and Stewart mountains. Other local land discussions, somewhat more heated, involve blocking residential development at Governor’s Point on Chuckanut Bay and at the so-called 100-acre woods or “Chuckanut Ridge” south of Fairhaven.

Similar acrimony arose after a negotiated DNR compromise protecting portions of Blanchard Mountain near Bow. Constant disputes arise when government classifies certain land as multifamily residential instead of single-family, or some land as only commercial, or light industrial or heavy industrial. Most Americans don’t like to mix conflicting uses.

Many of these land-use controversies share an either/or mindset. Either we completely preserve a place or see it clearcut. Either it’s all natural or ugly sprawl. Such a dichotomy may be unavoidable with the DNR because state law requires that Forest Board property transferred to local governments must never be logged for revenue but only serve as parkland.

The revenue lost from the Lake Whatcom reconveyance case will amount to almost $200,000 for Mt. Baker schools. While creation of an 8,400-acre forest preserve in an essential watershed seems both exciting and prudent, any loss of school funding in these times is alarming and imprudent. A dilemma.

Such quandaries are not inherent or humanly unavoidable, but rather reflect a culture that relishes absolutes. After having lived six different times in Germany’s Black Forest I became aware of other options than either/or land management.

Most visitors and residents agree that the Black Forest, a hilly landscape east of the Rhine River that measures about 30 miles wide and 100 miles long, is a lovely place. It contains several large cities, many modest towns, and a host of small, compact villages like Buchenbach (pop. 400) where we live.

The Black Forest (Schwarzwald in German) is not all black, especially in the spring and autumn, nor is it all forest. Crops and pastures of family farms sprinkle through the hills, giving relief to dark woods whose timber is owned by private individuals, government and local communities. Most Germans prefer restraint, order and planning, thus the human population does not continually push onto forest or farmland. “No Trespassing” signs are rare because Germans accept public access across private property.

They also respect trees beyond providing lumber. Large clearcuts are not allowed, making it possible to hike for hundreds of miles through selectively harvested areas and hardly be aware of any logging damage. Watersheds are assiduously protected. The result produces some of the best trail country I’ve ever traveled.

None of this long-term restraint damages the Black Forest economy. A prosperous sawmill near Buchenbach has at least doubled in size since 1995 as it exports lumber and provides wood products that are much more numerous, more appreciated, and more substantial in Germany than in the U.S.

Zoning reflects another difference. In the U.S. we use “zones” to protect residential property values by keeping out undesirable pollution and waste, noise and smells, freight and bright lights. Neighborhoods and homes ideally serve as shelters from the work place.

Land-use zoning differs in southwest Germany. A small enclave called Unteribental, about a fifth the size of Fairhaven, has 60 homes, many of which contain two or three families. Also within Unteribental are five active businesses: SIKO, a large international precision machine works; a hotel with restaurant; a construction firm; a roofing company; and a landscape contractor. Cows, goats and sheep graze in adjacent pastures.

My wife and I feel fortunate to enjoy a similar setting in Fairhaven. Within three blocks of our home are a refrigeration company, a wood-framing outfit and a guitar-maker.

What makes this fortunate? Why do we enjoy the close mix of industry, commerce, residences and farming in Germany? Why do we appreciate businesses in our Fairhaven neighborhood? Because they provide diversity to our lives. Because they add a daily dose of economic reality. And because such firms behave better, pollute less if at all, and realize that they too are part of a community instead of being segregated into “industrial zones.”

True dichotomies do exist in life and it behooves us to recognize them. But mixing, sharing, give-and-take, cooperation are equally important. Given a sport-obsessed culture coupled with dualistic religious traditions, we need to guard against false and harmful opposites — win or lose, us/them, all or nothing, black/white, good vs. evil attitudes that seem natural to many Americans.

Whether in protecting forest or governing cities, demands of purity may result in more harm than benefit. For me, wandering through the Black Forest in one of the world’s most industrial nations confirms that belief. §