Canopy of Titans: The Life and Times of the Great North American Temperate Rainforest

by Paul Koberstein, Jessica Applegate

“An eloquent plea for saving one of North America's last great forests.”
—Elizabeth Kolbert “We've understood that the Amazon rainforest is crucial to the planet but, as this very fine book makes clear, it is no more important than the great temperate forests of the Pacific coast.”
—Bill McKibben

In Canopy of Titans , Paul Koberstein and Jessica Applegate examine the global importance of the Pacific Coastal Temperate Rainforest that stretches from Northern California to Alaska. Their urgent and authoritative account sets out the threats facing a vital environmental resource, and celebrates the beauty and complexity of one of the world’s great forests. Drawing on years of on-the-ground reporting, Koberstein and Applegate pull back the curtain on policies of governmental bodies that have seriously diminished the rainforest’s capacity to store carbon, and uncover industry practices that have led to the destruction of swaths of a major ecological resource. Additionally, using an environmental justice perspective, Canopy of Titans shines a light on the Indigenous communities that have lived in the rainforest for millennia, and the impact forest policies have had on their lives.

Genres: Nonfiction, Ecology, Nature, Science

372 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2022

Reviews

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Canopy of Titans as part of a local book group. We were fortunate to get one of the authors (Paul Koberstein) to talk to us online, and even more fortunate to lure him to our city for an in-person appearance at our local book store, the always-amazing Village Books.

The book explores the emerging concept of the Pacific Coastal Temperate Rainforest, a somewhat contiguous ecological region stretching along the Pacific Coast of North America from northern California all the way to Alaska (with Chugach National Forest as a northern terminus). This immense and ancient woodland rivals South America's Amazon rainforest as a carbon store, and Canopy of Titans explores the modern history of this region in terms of forest management and preservation.

This book was published in 2023, and focuses largely on developments during the first Trump administration and the early days of the Biden administration. Trump was, of course, a committed enemy of science and conservation, and it's no surprise that many of the policy changes that he failed to achieve the first time around (such as repealing the Clinton era Roadless Area Conservation Rule) are once again on the table as part of his second administration.

Inevitably, there's a lot of bad news in these pages, and the repeating cycles of greed and destruction are wearying to read about. The silver lining is that recognition of the existence of a cohesive bioregion has given birth to the "Pacific Coastal Temperate Rainforest" nomenclature, and that small step has started to give birth to a new generation of activism that recognizes the value in preserving old growth forest for its crucial role in carbon sequestration.

[Mike Mikulski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Canopy of Trees describes the Pacific Temperate Rain Forest that stretches from the coastal redwoods of Northern California to Southern Alaska. This forest is home to the world’s largest and tallest trees. The authors propose this forest is comparable to the Amazon rain forest in its ability to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. The temperate rain forest and its old growth trees is under continual threat from logging, despite much of it being under federal ownership in the US and Canada.

Canopy of Trees is a bit disjointed. After a good start describing the rain forest and its importance in fostering biodiversity and holding carbon, the book becomes a collection of articles describing the various threats to this environment. Still it does a a good job of describing the forest and laying out the continued threats to its health.

[Patricia Wolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who lives in the Pacific Northwest I think that this is one of the most important books about this region. It's incredibly well researched, written in an engaging and accessible way, and leaves you feeling inspired to protect our old growth and mature forests. It taught me how important this region is for the entire world as a carbon sink. I feel a deep sense of sorrow over what has already been lost here, but also hopeful and excited to be living in a region where I can help make some positive change. This is a book that I will refer back to time and time again in that mission. I'll be keeping these writers on my radar for their future books and articles.

[Marina Richie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read to understand our Pacific Northwest Forests--the rampant history of logging, the quest to protect ancient forests, and their values for biodiversity and carbon. The journalism is excellent. the book is relevant today with the Trump administration's new mandate to make logging the priority on our National Forests nationwide--if carried out this would devastate our last ancient forests and endangered species and best trees for capturing and storing carbon.

[Terhi Tatjana · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-researched and beautifully written book about the history and current state of our temperate PNW forests. I came away from reading this book with a desire for action, to join a cause or a group to save these magical and critical habitats. Our history of logging and corporate-run land management is so divorced from empathy and sustainability. As a society in general, we’ve developed this idea that if it isn’t worth money, it isn’t worth protecting. This will ultimately be our downfall, and this book is a call to action, to do better, to consider not just the financial viability of land but the sustainable way in which it helps keep all living creatures alive. I love that the authors talk about Indigenous tribal plans for forest management and future sustainability. The Swinomish tribe, for example, developed the first climate change adaptation plan, which is still the template today for climate resilience planning throughout the native lands. The original and the updated plans are based on an indigenous world view, where one works with the land in stewardship in stead of domination. There is so much care and good information in this book about how we can work together to protect the forests that will be our saviors as the climate continues to get more extreme.

Favorite Line ~ “The most promising and proven carbon capture technology is the tree. Only forests, ecosystems of trees, roots, soils, and woody biomass, can remove carbon from the air and store it at the necessary scale.”

[Margaret Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really grateful to the authors for pulling all this information about our beloved temperate rainforest together. I learned a lot of detail about the ways in which government has been complicit with the extractive industries in decimating this amazing and beautiful environment. Our mature and old growth forests are our biggest allies in fighting climate catastrophe. The only thing that bothered me was it didn't seem like anyone had copy-edited it. When I looked at one footnote, the number did not correspond with the citation. There were many words left out or improperly used. That detracted from the read, which is important for all of us who live here.

[Reading Through The Generations · Rating 5 out of 5]

Should be required reading for all. Please read it!

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is hopeful at the same time it delivers an anxious message. It places the reader alongside salmon habitat and native wildlife within the protection of an old-growth forest. The effectiveness of a forest to regenerate itself and the planet gave me solace while the primary theme of the book is about how badly this natural resource has been destroyed or damaged. What little remains is under severe threat and yet the forest is resilient. With a little restraint on our part (unlikely, of course ), it will recover quickly.

I enjoyed the book on a personal level too because the Pacific NW is my home and the region is very familiar to me. My Dad was a logger. I grew up camping and fishing these forests with a growing concerned about our consumption of trees.

[Mathieu · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy to read description of forest issues in the Pacific Northwest. Focused on the temperate rainforest, the forest on the West side of the Cascades to the ocean, but some more broadly applicable issues and analysis. The authors gathered information from leading activists and scientists working in this area, and discuss both the science and politics.

Topics include Northwest Forest Plan, stream health and salmon, carbon sequestration, timber industry and politics, beaver and keystone species, Indigenous peoples, fallacy of carbon offsets.

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The best thing you can do today is save a tree.