Sunday, December 14, 2008

Passivity in a Forest's Final Days

The Washington Post ran a sad story a couple weeks ago about the death of an old tree. An ancient bald cypress tree dating back 1,000 years or more had met its demise in a remote swamp 80 miles southeast of Richmond. Dubbed “Big Mama,” the largest tree in Virginia towered over Cypress Bridge, a swamp in the Nottoway River. The Post reported that Byron Carmean, a retired horticulture teacher who “discovered” Big Mama in fall 2005, estimated her age to be between 1,500 and 2,000 years.

The 40 acres of virgin wilderness where Big Mama lives is so remote that its existence had not been reported until 2005, according to the article.

The shocking portion of the story appeared in the last sentence—a simple, declarative sentence that put Big Mama’s death into context.

"All but 1 percent of cypress-tupelo forests have been cut in the Southeast, experts say."

Maybe I’m naive, but I wasn’t prepared for that. I understand humans have cut down huge portions of forests in the United States. But to learn that 99% of the cypress-tupelo forests have disappeared caused quite a jolt.

One blogger, The Tidewater Gardener, had an opposite reaction, expressing surprise that virgin wilderness still exists in Virginia. “Though her age and size were impressive, I find the fact that there are still 40 acres of virgin wilderness left anywhere in this state, or even on the east coast more impressive. Left to mourn her departure are hopefully thousands of offspring and more than a few tree huggers,” the Tidewater Gardener wrote.

Also, notice how the “1% passage” in the Post article is written in the passive voice: "Cypress-tupelo forests have been cut." Most Journalism 101 courses teach reporters to write in active voice. Probably out of habit, the author of the story thought it would sound awkward to write, “Humans have cut all but 1 percent of the cypress-tupelo forests in the U.S. Southeast, experts say.”

In its story about Big Mama, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that International Paper owns the acreage where Big Mama lives. Virginia officials plan in early 2009 to buy about 375 acres, including Cypress Bridge, from International Paper and turn the forest of giant trees into a nature preserve.

While daily newspapers give Big Mama and deforestation issues cursory attention, there are news sources that provide comprehensive coverage of deforestation and species extinction. One such source is Michael Greenwell’s Exit Stage Right: Extinction News Service.

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