Draft 1. Deforestation of the Four Mile Creek watershed area

This topic submitted by Chelsea Nagy ( nagyrc@muohio.edu ) on 1/23/03. [ Rivers Team: Chelsea Nagy-Section: Cummins/Kaufman]

The primary questions that I wish to address concerning the Four Mile Creek include the following:

How has deforestation played a role in the communities surrounding Four Mile Creek? What are the scientific, social, and cultural effects that deforestation has had on the surrounding areas? Which areas exactly have been deforested? Which areas are still preserved? Who is benefiting from the deforestation and conversely, who is being negatively affected?

Disciplines involved:

Ecology: species of the area affected? habitats destroyed?

Geology/Geography: soil erosion? silt deposition in the creek?

Culture/History: spiritual connection to land, forest, creek? aesthetic value?

Economics: business in cutting trees? agriculture? value of wood?

Social: the development? human interaction? public vs. private land? conflicts and
issues over potential uses of the land?

Testing Approaches:

Some possible methods to study these above areas could include the following:
1. finding records of the number and location of trees cut (if possible)
2. interviews with community members about their feelings about the river, trees, and development of the land
3. research the profits made by the tree-cutting companies and others involve in the uses of the cleared land
4. measure the silt deposits in the creek
5. study the history of how deforestation originally became an influential factor in the area
-is it a new practice in the area with little impact so far? old practice
with large impact over the years?

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