The return of the trees teaches us a lesson. To reduce our destructive carbon output, the solution is not to reduce economic activity; rather, it’s to combine a booming urban economy with smart policies that make growth and ecology work in harmony.
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When Europeans first came to North America all the land between the eastern seaboard and the Mississippi was forested. It was said a squirrel could traverse the entire span without setting foot on the ground.
East of the Mississippi River, any land that isn't plowed yearly begins to grow trees. Driving in the region we've seen many formerly farmed fields reverting to forest.
Forest is less common west of the Mississippi. Much of the region, in the rain shadow of the Sierras and Rockies, gets too little rainfall to support trees, remaining grassland savanna, desert or near-desert.
In much of the mountain west you see trees on the north and east side of mountains, grass or scrub on the south and west facing slopes. Water - from rain and snow - is the issue; it persists in the shade nourishing trees, evaporates in the sun. This pattern is common in our region of the Rockies.
