Abby Frey
In this day and age, many people who support land and tree conservation would have trouble believing there could be a legitimate, understandable reason why the Mushrush family has killed over 10,000 trees in the past three years. The cutting down of over 10,000 trees seems like a devastating blow to the environment, but it might actually save theirs.
Since 1990, woodlands have started to encroach on the Great Plains Biome and the severity has gone from low to high in these areas. The encroachment of trees in these prairies and grasslands has led to negative consequences that are damaging these environmental systems. Some of these negative consequences include the loss of forage production for livestock, the displacement of grassland-dependent species, the increased risk of wildfires, the drying up of streams and reduced water quality, and the increased risk of vector-borne diseases. Not only does the introduction of trees damage the prairie biome, but it also makes climate change worse for the planet. Hasler and colleagues (2024) investigated the impacts of tree restoration on albedo, which is the amount of radiation from the sun that gets bounced back into the atmosphere. This solar radiation contributes to global warming. They found that planting trees in some locations, including grasslands, changes the albedo to the point where the positive effects of carbon storage by trees are countered. Research like this has brought awareness to the issues that woodland encroachment poses to prairie lands, resulting in the creation of federal initiatives to help people like the Mushrush family. The Great Plains Grasslands Initiative, developed and supported by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, has relieved some of the stress of the Mushrush family and allowed them to develop a concrete plan to save their land.
Even with the development of federal initiatives and research, the public is probably not aware of the threat to the prairie biome, or worse, they might not care. Chris Helzer, the Director of Science and Stewardship at the Nature Conservancy in Nebraska, believes that many people do not consider prairies to be naturally beautiful. This would result in Most people choosing to visit a wooded area instead of a grassland. In his opinion, it is important to encourage people to visit the prairies and make sure they enjoy their time there. Good naturalists and readers can have the power to showcase the prairie biome and help people appreciate its unique beauty. As more people appreciate and care about the prairie biome, efforts to protect it and help it thrive will grow.
Citations
Fogarty D.T., Baldwin C.E., Bauman P., Cram D., Goodman L., Thompson A., Treadwell M.L., & Twidwell D. 2023. Reducing Woody Encroachment in Grasslands: A Pocket Guide for Planning & Design. Great Plains Grasslands Extension Partnership, GPGEP-PB-01
Hasler, N., Williams, C. A., Denney, V. C., Ellis, P. W., Shrestha, S., Terasaki Hart, D. E., Wolff, N. H., Yeo, S., Crowther, T. W., Werden, L. K., & Cook-Patton, S. C. (2024). Accounting for albedo change to identify climate-positive tree cover restoration. Nature Communications, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-46577-1
Helzer, C. (2015, January 20). Ruminations on tree planting and prairie conservation. The Prairie Ecologist. https://prairieecologist.com/2015/01/20/ruminations-on-tree-planting-and-prairie-conservation/
Trees and shrubs are burying Prairies of the Great Plains. (2024, May 16). Science Friday. https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/great-plains-trees-green-glacier/#:~:text=This%20blanket%20of%20shrublands%20and,for%20a%20world%20that%27s%20disappearing