Environmentalist presents 'Billion Acre Plan'

By Carrie Thorson

For the Daily

A billion acres may seem like a lot, but it's only a third of the amount of rainforest already destroyed in the world. That's how many acres Save the Rainforest President Bruce Calhoun is trying to bring back in his "Billion Acre Plan."

Yesterday students in the School of Natural Resources and Environment listened to Calhoun promote his solution to save the rainforest and his new book, "Close Calls and Foolhardy Romances."

"We're destroying the rainforest out of ignorance," Calhoun said.

"Who are we to say what species belong on earth?" he asked. "Is our wisdom greater than the wisdom of evolution or the wisdom of God?"

Calhoun's plan is to raise enough money to restore one billion acres of rainforest. This involves paying off local farmers who are cutting it down in the first place, which calls for huge government and corporate support.

The radical plan caused some students to be skeptical, including SNRE senior Jessica Mendelowitz, chair of Michigan Student Assembly's Environmental Issues Commission which arranged for Calhoun to speak at the University.

"I don't know about this plan," Mendelowitz said. "He's just a scientist, not an ecologist. He might need help in that area."

Other students shared her skeptical views.

"Plans like this take a lot of money," SNRE junior Evan Hyatt said. "People aren't willing to give money to problems they can't see right in their backyard."

The earth loses about 100 species every day, and only 3.5 billion acres of rainforest remain out of the 7.1 billion that existed 200 years ago.

"As many as five species per hour go extinct. Even the thought that it could get that high is terrible," Hyatt said.

Scientists predict that at the rate of current deforestation, the earth's rainforests will be completely destroyed in 50 years. That makes us the last generation with an opportunity to do something about it, so plans like this are taken seriously.

"I'm getting all positive reactions. There's no down side to this program," Calhoun said.

"It's a good start," SNRE sophomore Gabriel Tamaska said.

Calhoun said he hopes to gain international attention with the help of his new book, a dramatic romance novel targeted toward women.

"Mostly it's women who care about the environment and who buy the book, so there's a lot of adventure, romance and close calls," Calhoun said.

"But they're all true," he added.

NORMAN NG/Daily

Bruce Calhoun, president of Save the Rainforest, speaks at the School of Natural Resources and the Environment yesterday about his "Billion Acre Plan" to save the world's rainforests.