Forest Dusting with Flying boats the 1929-1930 Operations of Western Canada Airways Limited

摘要

The Forests Of North America Have Always Been Under Attack By Insects, Fungi, And Fire. This is simply the natural cycle within forests. Insects attack old growth trees weakened by age. Fungi attack damaged or decadent timber. Fire is the cleansing agent, clearing away dead or dying trees. This all makes way for a young vigorous forest to emerge from beneath. Yet the impetus to combat nature's attacks on the forest is purely economic. During the first half of the twentieth century, Douglas fir lumber was the mainstay of the coastal British Columbia (BC) forest industry. That industry itself accounted for fifty cents of every dollar made in BC. Other than carefully selected high grades of Sitka spruce destined for the aircraft industry [see: "Wood that Could Fly", CAHS Journal, Vol 37 No 2, Summer 1999, pp 66-74], Douglas fir was the most valuable timber around.