All the rational arguments for the preservation of old-growth forests biodiversity, watershed protection, climate control won't answer that question. You can vote the right way and send the right checks, and stay away. Maybe the forests would be better off without more people trampling through them. But I think not. For me, visiting old trees is like visiting old relatives, people who used to change my diapers and soothe my tantrums.
Ancient forests are memory.
Not memory that recalls in cinematic clarity, but memory that touches your deepest core, like the scent of an old-fashioned flower something that you can't quite place but evokes a strong, visceral feeling. If all this sounds suspiciously like hippy-dippy tree hugging, well . . . I've wrapped my arms around a few trunks in my life. And it always feels best when my hands can't touch because the trunk's girth is too great. The question of memory is where the rational arguments connect with the spiritual.