Conservation of Natural Resourcesdates to

Story of conservation is the story of waste and how it can be prevented. On the other hand, petroleum, one of our most important mineral resources, is being used up at an alarming rate. And so too is our coal. Furthermore, one half of all coal produced is wasted in mines or in transit. Rivers have been so polluted by the refuse from our towns and factories that they are often a menace to health. Naturally, these streams are no longer good fishing grounds. Much of our smooth, fertile farmland has been misused in various ways until it has become ugly and the once beautiful forests, such as this, have been zones of desolation. The timber is gone and so is the wild game which once was sheltered beneath its shade. Our original forest land covered more than one half the continent. The largest area of hardwood and softwood timber stretched almost unbroken from the Atlantic to the Mississippi River. Today, less than 2/5 of this timber remains. Furthermore, only 1/4 of the good softwood timber is left. It is true that it was necessary to cut and use much of this timber during the development of our country. The crash of falling trees was a familiar sound as fields were cleared and cities built. But branches and trimmings littered the forest floor. About 60% of every tree cut went to waste. Afterward in such areas, only a moment's carelessness with fire was needed before the flames started devastating race. From a puff of smoke and a little flash of flame, deadly forest fires raged through the woods on mile-long fronts, destroying in 1 hour trees that took 100 years to grow. Such fires left black ugly scars on the face of the land, a waste of many million dollars worth of timber. Steps have been taken to stop these fires. State and federal agencies keep a careful lookout during periods of greatest danger. Again, fire trails are cut in the forests to prevent the spread of fires. And a campaign of education encourages the public to be careful and to help prevent forest fires. Furthermore, underbrush in the forests is being cleaned up so that fires spread less easily. At the lumber mill, a considerable portion of each log was formerly wasted. This was the slab trimmed off the four sides of the log and the sawdust that was formed when the boards were sawed. From such materials now are made toys, boxes, crating, and many other useful articles. Even artificial silk is made from wood which was formerly wasted. Best of all, the forests themselves are being replaced by an intelligent replanting program. And again, the natural beauty and usefulness of forests are being restored. In the meantime, large areas of our land have been made treeless and the consequences are far-reaching. Most land was cleared to be cultivated. Year after year, the fields were plowed and replowed. The soil was thus left unprotected much of the time and readily washed away. The rainwater followed the same course time after time until finally great raw gullies resulted, leaving the fields worthless for farm purposes. The soil washed down from these gullies chokes up our large rivers so that they're unable to carry as much water as formerly and devastating floods result. To stop the loss of our soil by water erosion, dams such as these are built across gullies to check the rush of water. The soil brought in by rainwater slowly settles down and fills up the gully. The industrious beaver is being pressed into service as a dam builder and soil conserver. The beavers are caught and carried to small streams where floodwaters begin. They immediately set to work building their dams which serve admirably in controlling floodwaters in small headwater streams. In like manner, the large man-made dams not only make use of water power which for years has gone to waste, but also help control the flow of water in streams and prevent floods. Where cultivated fields slope, contour plowing and terracing are used to stop erosion by rainwater. Steps or terraces are cut into the soil. When the rain comes, it runs off without washing away the soil. In the western part of the United States, they are struggling with another phase of the soil erosion problem. Here too, the land has been plowed and replowed. The topsoil is of a fine texture and since there is not much rainfall, it is virtually dust. These areas are subject to high winds, which occasionally blow the dust along in great clouds. In a single day, as much as 300 million tons of topsoil have been lifted from the Great Plains. During the past few years, partly because of drought, wind erosion has affected in some degree more than 60 million acres in the United States and has left in its wake abandoned homes, ruined fields, and despair. This Dust Bowl includes in the main parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, and Wyoming. Each year, the amount of damage is being extended. If left unchecked, the wind and water will make great areas of our western prairies hopelessly eroded. Steps are already being taken to check this new southwestern Dust Bowl. Much of the land is being returned to grass and soil anchoring vegetation like trees and hedges are being planted to conserve the moisture in the ground and to break the sweep of the wind. Also, the government has purchased much of this land and has returned it to grazing use. Resources under the surface of the earth also have been used up at a rapid rate. Oil is a good example. Much oil is lost when gushers blow in. The oil which splashes on the ground can never be reclaimed. Careless methods of extracting the oil have led to fires in which much of the precious liquid has gone up in smoke. The most effective means of saving oil is to make full use of its byproducts. At the refinery, the oil is heated in stills and more than 200 different products are obtained. Gasoline, for example, it was formerly thrown away as useless. Another important product is fuel oil. We also obtain lubricating oil which is necessary for nearly all machines. Other byproducts of petroleum include mineral oil, paraffin, and asphalt. The part of the crude oil now used in these and many other byproducts was formerly wasted. The waste of our water resources includes stream pollution. Poisonous waste is poured into our rivers, killing the fish and menacing the health of all of us. This can be prevented by sending such waste to sewage disposal plants, which change much of it into useful fertilizer. Thus, it is hoped that our rivers will again run clear and all will be inhabited by fish. An intelligent program of conservation will restore the beauty of our land. It will cause our forests again to grow luxuriantly. Our fields will regain their natural function. Our streams will be put to use, saving our coal and oil. And thus, the great natural resources of our country will serve the greatest good for the greatest number of people for the longest time.