On washington journal. Republican of arkansas in the member of Natural Resources committee in the house. Also a supporter of was being called the trees act. An effort that was made more public by President Trump supported at the dominos World Economic forum. What does this act propose. This is an act, to put the tree across the globe. By 2050. Trees. Trillion it is a whole lot more though, our biggest full that we have, as far as mitigating climate issues, and will meet utilize those for us and keep from sustainable and working in active, really have the best tool that is out there that is widespread, natural and is very economical to have this carbon atmosphere from the forest. You come to us as a forrester yourself. The only graduate of yale, with the master of four street there. This mustve been sort of like music to your ears when you heard the president getting behind this effort. It. It is something that is near and dear to me. If you look at the planet, theres about treat 3 trillion trees on the planet. We have about 300 million of them in the u. S. We do a good job of taking care of our forest. We could always do better in this part of what is in the bill. Not only to plant a lot of trees, but also to take care of the forest that we have. And then, the neat thing about trees is they produce blood which is about 42 percent pure carbon but when we harvest the tree sustainably, we make a product on the event, that carbon stays in the wood for as long as the structure is there. So this table, went underneath, you see what all around the studio here, that corbin was pulled out of the atmosphere decades or even centuries ago. And remains in the wood. So this bill has a component to it to promote the sustainable building practices. It can go a long ways towards reducing atmosphere come carbon. Ensuring that carbon. If you think about what forests can do, not only can we sequester carbon in the trees, but we harvest the trees and women endless amount of storage for pulling the carbon out of the atmosphere, through the forest and in the Building Products and stored there. People are catching on to this especially my state we have a lot of beautiful forests. Good Sustainable Forest and four street practices. The university of arkansas, where i didth my undergraduate work in engineering, they built to fivestory mass timber dormitories. Moved into them last fall they are the largest wooden building projects in the country. Are those the safest and still are another building structure pretty. You have to meet all of the fire codes, theres been a lot of testing on using wood and buildings. If you think of a big log in a fire, the charge from the outside, takes a long time to burn into the middle. The neat thing about wood is it heats up, it retains its strength. Since one of the first questions that they are aspirated just of the robe road from the university of arkansas we have walmart was building our new Corporate Headquarters and in their announcement they said theyre going to build itor all out of sustainably grown arkansas wood which is for local economies thereto. For instance, that walmart facility will have about 70 Million Pounds of carbon sequestered in it. It is a building for 15000 employees. It is more like a college campus. Congressman for arkansas, supporter of the trillion trees act. Were talking about Climate Change more broadly. We welcome calls and comments. Republicans, then to join into into phone numbers on the screen. How can well first of all what is the number, trillion trees worldwide. It is estimated number that opposed planning in theti u. S. 300 billion trees in the u. S. That is about 10 percent of the World Population of trees. If we were to do our fair share, which i think we will do more than that, it would be hundred billion trees over 30 years. 3. 3 Million Trees a year. The clothing is were already letting a right to have Million Trees here in the u. S. Talk about 800 million mark trees in the plant and were going to do this and get the public involved. When benefits grade four street challenge. We want to help youngsters understand how photosynthesis work in the benefits of Sustainable Forestry management and Good Building practices. Part of the program will be to supply so it cannot only be a classroom experience but handson experience. Opening that up for nonprofits and corporations and ngos, they can all come together and have supplied these trees. We getting overwhelming since ponce programs who want to participate in this. Its a mac all of these trees planted annually, who is the largest, the federal government, industry. Industry by far plans more trees than anybodyar else. When you talk about Sustainable Forestry. In my home state of arkansas, we plant three or four trees for every tree we harvest. Trees were reproducing long before we learn how to plant seeds in the nursery and transplant those ceilings. Trees naturally regenerate. It you can do certain forestry practices which will cause Natural Regeneration to occur and you can get exponential more trees sprouting than we can never plant. So you get more trees just by doing Natural Regeneration especially in our federal land. And it was more of a worldwide issue but we do as a forrester look at issues, like the amazon and reinforced in the clearcutting in the fires that happened in the place like that. How concerned are you that that sort of thing might happen in the u. S. We have seen that in the past in the u. S. We didnt understand four street. Its kind of a new science really. Went toioned that they the forestry school. The first four street school. It was in 19 oh one. It is relatively speaking for science, thats not law eight that long ministry. But we figured outhi the Science Behind forestry and how to do it correctly. The part of the trillion tree act was across the globe to provide Technical Assistance to countries that make the behind understanding how Sustainable Forestry works. We wanty to. Fours are the best carbon making mechanisms that we have it. It is amazing when you think about sunshine on am leaf, and excites the water and Carbon Dioxide and causes the hydrogen to go over to the Carbon Dioxide and leaves the oxygen in the upstairs are the carbon in the street for as long as that trees there as long as that would is maintained. When that tree burns of the first fire, carbon goes right back into the atmosphere. When he falls over and dies and in six judo, he goes back to carbon and usually is nothing. When a student. We can intervene in that and take the carbon is stored in buildings, use the wood for a lot of different projects and reduce the carbon in the atmosphere. Carbon did not dioxide since we have been measuring actual atmospheric Carbon Dioxide, in 1958, in hawaii, three or 15 parts per million. Now its 411 parts per million. Using air pockets we know going back thousands of years, it had neveres been above three parts r million. Youre fairly concerned about man made Climate Change. Is a question this is the 18 hundreds, we put more carbon into the atmosphere. See aio lot about ideas about we gotta quit putting some of carbon and atmosphere but people rarely stop and think about what about the carbon that is already in the atmosphere. How will he get out of the investor. The trees, thats how you get it out. Thats the most effective tool pretty. Will go to linda first on the phone. Good morning. I am up in the sticks in northern minnesota. I live in the forest. I am 65 years old and both of my parents worked in the forest industry. I planted my first tree when i was one years old. And it continued planting trees every year since then. Enema say that after 65 years, that its great that the republicans are on board and think that this is a good idea. But trees are not the only thing. That are causing Climate Change. As a lets talk about trump. Turning back the clean water predict steve want clean air for your kids to breathe. T t you dont want clean water for you is to drink. My suggestion for you if you are serious, this get hold of greta. Because you want to talk about with the young kids want in this country. They want to greta. So listen to her, get some ideas from her. I must try to move forward. And thank you sir. Thank you. Ive been to minnesota even in the wintertime when it is president called up there. Im glad you mentioned water. We think about trees in terms of teddy roosevelt, on the lungs of the earth. But if you look at some of roosevelts early speeches. I just went back and reread my address the First AmericanForest Congress in 19 oh five. Then he talks exclusively about how Important Trees are for water. And how i said all along the trees are the lungs of the earth. Kind of like the kidneys of the earth as well. Roosevelt wanted water in the west and he knew how important it was to protect the watersheds in the timber around them. We know that that is good science. You look in new york city and boston. Ineir water is coming from sustainably managed forests. Over two thirds of the drinking water, in the United States comes from forested areas. So youre exactly right on taking care of water and that is the beauty about forests. Its only good for clean air we get clean water and Wildlife Habitat and all of the other benefits that go along with a healthy forest. John republican line. It. Good morning. Companies texas in the pine woods and weave a lot of trees, they take out the trees and they put more and that they take out. Weve always had that and is good for an environment here and listening to the caller previous on Climate Change the blamed trump. They want to a political issue. Where i come from, im 50 years old. But instead of the bible. And the fullness thereof, and this is his plan is, is not going to let anything happen to it. Its always wanting to do one thing for one industry the problem is you not going to get the rest of the world to do anything china and india will not do nothing. And if they dont, we can do all we want to and it wont make one bit of good. I would like to hear your comments on that. Thank you. And give john. Your neighbor in my district in the state of arkansas. It borders texas mother beautiful part of the country. I agree with you that god is sovereign but he also tells us the word to be good stewards of what is given us to care take. I think that is what we should do regardless of what others around the world do you think we can beat leaders and showing them how to be good stewards and that is with the true and trees act is about. It shows that we need to take care of responsibility at home and to take care of the forest land in the timber that we have. We also have god programs there to help education educate other countries. Ethiopia planted 50 Million Trees in one day. So you can plant a lot of trees if you have the gumption to do that. I think we can see changes around the world. Youre exactly right. Most Greenhouse Gas emissions from china and india right now and people realize that the u. S. Is leading the world in reducing Greenhouse Gas and iff emissions. We reduced our Greenhouse Gas emissions more than the next 12 countries combined the sign on to the agreement. Theres a lot more that we can do. But trees are the obvious answer i think was the first big step ofaddressing this problem carbon in the atmosphere. The Natural Resource committee is asking him instruction is your committee getting pretty. Im getting a lot of good feedback about bill. Im talking to the democrats about cosponsoring bill. Its really something. And people will look at the Science Behind it and what we are trying to achieve with the spell, we in washington dc, someone will disagree within it. Hunting and ame solid on the fas and on theon research. I can biggest doubts her research paper. It is interesting since ive been working on this i have been reaching out to academics and ive been flooded with research. In the most effective thing that werc can do is mitigate carbon s to have healthy for us were not burning them up and forced buyers and where the are Going Forward on the forestt using the product off of the forest and generating these residuals, chips and sawdust when you saw plummer. Yolet us energy can be used as renewable source of energy. Think about instead of or just imagine that instead of seeing millions of acres of timber land in the west, going up in flames that we go in and without some of these overgrown forests only capture that energy in the case fossil fuels in the ground when we do that. And again is not the only solution but i think its a great first step. Lets hear from betty and kansas. Good morning and sorry for my voice. My husband is 75 and is minute longer for all of his life. We have just a little one man sawmill. Just a small operation. Our passion right now is that her cities are counties interstates, when those companies, when the workers cut trees after a storm or for whatever reason, they just take this to the landfill. Ss them, why dont you try to get some use out of that timber. The people come in and cut them for firewood or something. Taken to their Little Summit and use it for their woodworking projects. And they say oh no we, we can do that because it would compete with t our lumber guards. And businesses. I think if we would do something on a city, county and state level, would show a message of conservation and of a joint message of caring for the environment. There is just our passion right here. Small issue we think it could be big if you think of it all over the United States. Im glad you brought it up betty. Thank you. Conservation starts with the individual. What youre talking about this issue that needs to be addressed and there is a lot of technology being developed where people can take municipal solid waste goes into a landfill they can make bio crude out of that. He can be refined ridealong with petroleum and there are other ways that you can use what residue to generate electric age. I need more research in those areas. The really exciting thing and were promoting this and this legislation is more research and development on a biodegradable plastic and biochemicals, theres a world of opportunity out there to make a lot of the things that we use on a daily basis and make them a lot more sustainable by using wood as a resource for the input into those areas. Washington and somebody is going to disagree with you. You mentioned that. This is a pushback from the technology from mit. It could become a climate dangerous climate destruction. Yes trees can and will need a place there already in the mount of surplus for a while but that is all the more reason that we cant rely entries as extended for the separate Monumental Task of cutting emissions from her Energy Transportation and agriculture systems. Its hard to relate republican sudden enthusiasm for tree planting. Sorts of revelations in texas required to bring about the changes. Mit is obviously a Great Institution that we have here in the country. I would love to debate whoever wrote that because i dont think there is think the whole picture. I go back to what we do about the carbon that is already in the atmosphere. Show me a technology or ritual is more efficient and more economical than entry double that carbon out of the atmosphere and store it for long periods of time. Plus the one thing that the people are missing that made the argument that were not doing anything to reduce emissions, the Sustainable Tax credit that is in the bill. It provides a tax credit is based on a score of the sustainability of the building through the inputs of it or how much energy would into manufacturing product and transporting it to the jobsite. Thats going to cut down on carbon emissions. It scores and on how much energy does it take to operate and maintain the building. Any for more efficient appliances in it, more efficient lighting and heating and cooling, that has him on emissions of fossil fuels. Our carbon. And finally how much carbon isnt stored into theca structue over time. I would love to debate it with anybody other than it does not reduce the amount of carbon is going into the atmosphere. Be focus a lot of transportation tools. Transportation, all of it combined, planes trains and automobiles, ships farm tractors, 27 percent of the Greenhouse Gas emissions from the u. S. Comes from transportation. 50 percent of it comes from industry and electrical generation. So we always i think it is easier to see cars moving around and seeing that that is where all of the missions are coming from but it is not. It directly affects the amount of carbon that is being released into the atmosphere and it is more than anything, i have seen to pull carbon out of the atmosphere. It. You obviously come to this with an expertise. What first got you interested in two this field. For natural state and are forced everywhere. I spent a lot of time in the forest. My sunday School Teacher when i was a young man, was a world war ii veteran. He came back from the war and he was in the first graduating class of the university of Arkansas School of forestry. Its only for Street Program and state. And i just had a Great Respect for him. And in spent time hunting and fishing with him and he knew everything about the Natural Environment around us. They just wanted to be like him. I studied engineering undergraduate and that an opportunity to go to yelp and study forestry. And is just passion of mine. My wife calls me tree nerd. It has its drawbacks as well. Michael is next from new york city on a democrat line. Go ahead. It. Hey how arell you. But just a couple of things. I really find this is another con by mr. Cobb. A client find it pretty curious this is happening during an election year. I is anything been done the last three years. And what is mr. Trump going to do. But these trees on top of the pipeline that is allowing in america. How about that. Give me some understanding of why this is happening nine months before the election and what is been done the last three years which i know was absolutely zip. Ive been pretty much working on this the whole time in congress. Work on Sustainable Forestry issues since i have been in 2014. For me isue not something that just started. And you forgive a great point. There are places that we can plant trees and entries. A part of this bill, looks at urban forestry. We could do a lot better job of planting trees in urban areas. Urban areas used to be most of them used to be force. We have cleared those us. We give up the marginalizing agriculture land i would also look at things like wetlands and we gotta make sure we got the right species that were doing d e proper science and planting these trees. But again you can while were doing this, what is the motive behind it. But i would ask you this question. It was the better alternative. I dont believe there is a better alternative in removing atmospheric carbon than to plant trees and keep our force healthy and sustainable and uses products in everyday products. We have the u. S. House coming in here very shortly. With a couple more calls pretty so we will go to maryland. Larry and the republican line. Good morning. Lltrees give off oxygen and an r filter. Owen think this big Global Warming deception is it is from god. In california and australia burning and setting fires. So the greatest of that we have is nuclear. Tornadoes and floods and earthquakes and fires and all that is normal. Lets look at forest fires out west. In your experience is it worse now than he is to be in your experience in the last 20 years or so. Smoke you look at the data, this just on a gradual increase, you can almost tie into when we stopped managing our force. I like to use the term that we have loved hard freeze to death. Trees are dynamic and force. Their living organisms. They grow and they stress, they get stressed because of lack of water or lack of life. And then you get things like insects and disease infestations and you see stressed timber and lightning strikes and then it goes up in flames. It is a natural process. Fire is part of the natural process. In part of the forestry is understanding how to mimic natural processes and again in a controlled manner. So you do a much better job of taking care of the federal and so weve got rid the founder of the yelp forestry school, he said we need to do the greatest number for the longre run. We forget that sometimes. We want to just do what seems prudent for the moment. Some people think that you country it is bad but it is really mimicking a natural process. It. One quick call. The house is about ready to come in. Amy and richmond, virginia. Goll ahead. I applied the congressman for wanting to plant all of these trees but i want to point out that the Trump Administration is wanting to move into the g National Forest. As the largest rain forest, measuring first in north america. To drilling. Get a response and meet what is your thought by the administration on this. I havent heard anything about drilling. But it is the Largest National forest in the National Forest system. And if you look at when timber was being cut out of the tongass, if you think of it as a football field, the amount of timber that was cut was less than a 6inch strip off of a football field. Youve got more natural mortality taken place in a forest like that, then which are ever going to cut out of it. We have plenty of trees in places other than the tongass and in areas like that. We can do a lot better job of being sustainable with the working forest. It. Nativity short but the house is coming in next. On the hill, it is great to have you here. 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