TREE-FELLING IN GERMANY
SIR,—May I raise a humble voice in defence of the German forests and in protest against the present policy of dealing with the forestry resources of Trizonia ? In the last few years reports from reliable sources in Germany have been reaching me about prolonged spells of droughts and torrential rains, formerly unknown in Germany, which are most seriously impairing the harvest yields. As I lived in Germany for almost forty years I can testify that this state of affairs, which doubtless results from a violent change in climatic conditions brought about by vast timber felling, is abnormal. (For statistics see Special Report of the Military Governor : The German Forest Resources Survey (Office of the Military Government for Germany [U.S.], October, 1948, No. 40).) In the British Zone clear felled spaces now amount to 12.8 per ccnt, of the forest area, in Lower Saxony to 15 per cent., in the mountain forest areas to 15-20 per cent. Normally—i.e., under pre-Nazi Governments-1 per cent. of the forests was in a clear cut condition.
The German climate has always been a most precarious one and, therefore, for hundreds of years the German authorities have taken the greatest care and have sacrificed a great amount of the nation's income to the preservation of their forests which, in themselves, never were naturally abundant but had to be carefully and skilfully tended and nurtured in order to preserve the fertility of the soil. Thus, despite its large forest resources, Germany had always been an importer of its timber requirements (formerly about 25 per cent. of requirements).
It has been pointed out in defence of Allied policy that there were large reserves which still constituted a serious war potential. For the matter of that, air (artificial nitrogen) is also a serious war potential and so is anything else that makes the continuation of human existeme possible. Trizonia is a vital member of Western Europe and as such a vital part of world economy. It seems to be a short-sighted policy to endanger its economic stability and make Germany a continuous liability for the sake of short-term gains to the Occupying Powers.—I remain,
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