rocker shared his views on the economics of forestry ; explained why he thinks Leopold is so revered ; and addressed — sort of — whether the current Stones ’ tour will be the last (“ until the next one ”).
“ I never mind explaining to those that have misunderstandings about forestry practices that the U . S . is a great example of sustainable forestry ,” Leavell said .
Leavell champions the idea of renewable , working forests , an idea that Wisconsin foresters helped establish early in the last century — always planting more than they cut . He marvels at the thousands of “ gifts of the forest ,” from timber for homes and churches to Keith Richards ’ guitars and his own maple-and-spruce grand piano .
From the Stones ’ June 9 tour stop in Atlanta , not far from his rural farm near Macon , Leavell said : “ Here in Georgia , we plant , manage and grow 40 % more trees than we harvest . And when we harvest , we do it in a careful and thoughtful way . There are good , sound and strong guidelines that most all loggers follow .”
Common misperceptions about tree farming often go unchallenged , an issue that Leavell addressed by writing the 2001 book “ Forever Green .” According to his autobiography , he wrote that book during Stones ’ tour stops in the late 1990s after he “ discovered how much misinformation there is in the general public about the forest industry .”
To those who think that cutting trees is inherently bad , Leavell reminds that unmanaged forests are older , drier , less healthy and more vulnerable to forest fires .
“ The Native Americans knew that ,” he said . “ Early Europeans and other earlier cultures and societies knew that .”
And to those who discourage the use of paper for the sake of trees , Leavell also has a ready response , which he includes in green type below the signature line of his emails :
“ Notice : It ’ s OK to print this email . Paper is a biodegradable , renewable , sustainable
product made from trees . Growing and harvesting trees provides jobs for millions of Americans , and working forests are good for the environment , providing clean air , clean water , wildlife habitat and carbon storage . Thanks to improved forest management , we have more trees in America today than we had 100 years ago .”
From rocker to tree-hugger Musicians ’ involvement with environmental causes is nothing new , but Leavell ’ s interest goes far deeper than most . He and his wife , Rose Lane , were named National Outstanding Tree Farmers in 1999 by the American Tree Farm System , which honors renewable practices . He has been recognized by the Georgia Conservancy and the National Arbor Day Foundation , and was named an honorary forester by the U . S . Forest Service .
Leavell ’ s midlife conversion to tree- hugger came after his wife inherited a large tract of land in central Georgia from her grandmother , whose family had held it for generations .
As it turned out , Lane ’ s inheritance came at a time when Leavell was unemployed , “ without a prospect on the horizon .”
The Allman Brothers had broken up amid scandals and acrimony . Their recording company failed . A few of the Brothers joined Leavell ’ s band , Sea Level , which won acclaim but struggled to break even . The call from the Stones , which came out of the blue , was still off in the future .
And so Leavell became a tree farmer out of necessity . He began with Christmas trees but advanced quickly into loblolly , longleaf and slash pines as well as some hardwoods . He took classes to become
“ I never mind explaining to those that have misunderstandings about forestry practices that the U . S . is a great example of sustainable forestry .”
Chuck Leavell , continued on page 30 fall 2015 print works ! 29