Forest Dreams, Forest Nightmares by Nancy Langston (review)

Forest Dreams, Forest Nightmares Nancy Langston Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1995 Reviewed by C l a u d e C u r r a n Southern Oregon University D uring the past few decades, in which environmental issues have again come to the attention of the public, there seems to have been a tendency to lose sight of the fact that many before us faced the same questions we face in the contemporary world. Nancy Langston has directed readers to consider historical, political, ecological, and geo­ graphical evidence in order to understand the evolution of industrial land-use of the Blue Mountains in northeastern Oregon. The volume provides insights into specific environmental conditions in the Blues and human adjustment, at least in terms of the “opening up” of the West. A very important aspect of this work is conciliatory toward the major players of the time, when taken in context of the pioneering ethic that existed in the Western United States and which in turn was accepted— indeed, expected—by the remainder of the country. Most people now engaged in “environmental battles,” no matter where their allegiance resides, would do well to read this book and use it as 184 CURRAN: Review of Forest Dreams, Forest Nightmares 185 an example of the knowledge necessary to render complex environ­ mental decisions in both the public and private arenas. The chapter early in the book on “Place and Ecology” is an ex­ cellent description of the physical geography of the region under consideration. It provides an overview of the basic environmental constraints on a landscape that at first glance is coherent as the Blue Mountains, yet when viewed in greater detail it is one in which local­ ized variation presents almost insurmountable challenges for land managers in both public and private sectors. This chapter provides an excellent introductory geography of the region, necessary to un­ derstand the challenges presented to land managers as detailed in the remaining chapters. The remainder of the book is logically developed with chapters in which the role of federal foresters, early silviculture, economics of demand for raw materials, changes rendered by domesticated and wild ungulates, and fire have worked in consort to produce the land­ scape of today. The final chapter, “Living with Complexity,” is an excellent sum­ mary. One statement that appeals to my perspective (bias) on issues dealt with in this work is found on page 306: “The land is full of information, and trying to attend to this information—trying to moni­ tor the effects of human actions— is a task whose complexity has overwhelmed federal agencies and individuals alike.” I believe some allusion to the means of resource assessment now available to land managers, i.e., remotely sensed information and analysis assisted by Geographic Information Systems, will provide more and more infor­ mation for all of us— if we just understand it and make wise choices! Perhaps some of the resource dilemmas detailed by Langston will result in sound long-term decisions. Forest Dreams, Forest Nightmares is a well-written, wellresearched , and well-documented book. There is ample use of primary research sources and reasonable dependence on secondary sources. This work should become a part of a geographer’s library either per­ sonal or institutional. ...