By mimicking natural wildfires, clear cutting is widely recognized by forest scientists and even by conservation groups such as the Environmental Defense Fund, American Forests, the Society of Professional Foresters as an ecologically sound technique for reforesting many softwood species. That's because for their survival conifer seedlings typically require sunlight from an open canopy and cannot survive in shade. A natural forest supports more ecological diversity than a managed forest. Managed forests, even those with some clear-cutting, often produce more biodiversity than completely natural forests, according to U.S. Forest Service studies in the Lake States and New England. Even tree farm plantations contain a rich mosaic of plant and animal life.
Forest management harms fragile wetlands.
In fact, good forest management is the environmentally preferred land use for wetlands, as confirmed by the National Wetlands Policy Forum sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Forest management harms wildlife. Forest management helps wildlife. Recycling extends the use of virgin fiber, but it will not replace it. Even so, today well over half of all fiber used in paper products comes from recycled paper and from wood waste from sawmills.