In a Dark Wood: The Fight over Forests and the New Tyranny of Ecology
Chase begins by tracing the swath of logging from east to west, the efforts of silviculturists to achieve timber sustainability, and the evolution of ideas that have led to the "teleological myth" of ecology. Next he recounts the attempts by ecologists, principallyEarth First!ers, to block logging in the Northwest, initially to preserve old-growth forests. In addition to finding biocentric beliefs offensive, Chase also appears to find the Earth First!ers' lifestyles as nasty as their terrorist tactics, and the narrative devolves into irrelevant tattle and ridicule. Perhaps because of this antipathy, he is persuasive in his sympathetic depiction of the plight of the logging community. Chase's pro-forestry contribution to the ongoing controversy of whether habitat preservation is essential, nonessential, or detrimental to species survival is also effective, and examples are provided of some deleterious consequences of preservation, such as the nationwide overabundance of deer.Brenda Grazis