SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry - Empire Forester Yearbook (Syracuse, NY)

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pulp, pa efz plastics CLARENCE E. LIBBY ULP and paper manufacture is currently the sixth largest indus- try in the United States. ln Canada it is the number one industry. What are the prospects that papermaking will become the leading indus- try in this country also? Immediately they are not good for we do not now possess the forest resources to make such an industry possible. Qlf we did possess such resources, or if we can develop them in the future, there is every reason to expect that the pulp and paper industry will continue to advance in rank until it becomes one of the three leading manufacturing industries in the United States. The old saying necessity is the mother of invention was never more forcibly demonstrated than during the late war years when pulp and paper products were successfully substituted for hundreds of items formerly made from textile fibers, wood, glass and metal. liven the manufacture of war's most vital material-smokeless powder-shifted largely from its old lbase of cotton linters to wood pulp. Mil- lions of pounds of munitions and foodstuffs were shipped to our armed forces abroad in newly de- veloped, strong, paper V-boxes which replaced the heavier and bulkier wooden boxes that had been used heretofore. Soldiers in the field were fed from paper K-ration boxes thereby conserving vitally need- ed tin for more essential uses. Many of these paper substitutes which were forced upon us by the grim necessities of war proved to be so satisfactory that they have quietly taken their pla-cc alongside the more common necessities of life. Indeed, it would be unusual for today's housewife to find less than a dozen kinds of paper -in a day's supply of groceries, these papers encompassing a wide range of qualities from the coarse paperboard of the Coleen carrier to the transparent moisture-proof wrapper of the frozen food package. These few examples illustrate the rapidly expanding use of paper and forecast a future so filled with paper products that the next hal f-century may well be called the paper age . The usefulness of paper in many new products has been greatly enhanced by combining it in different ways with another fabulous newcomer on the industrial horizon - plastics. Many of the most useful plastics are themselves made from woodpulp and the rapid growth of the plastics industry has had its effect in materially increasing the consumption of the better grades of wood pulp. Sheets of paper, interleaved or laminated with plastic films, may be treated with heat and pres- sure and molded into structural shapes of great strength and beauty. These new products are now appearing on the 'market as table tops, flooring, tiling, and furniture and are being machined into hun- dreds of articles designed for everyday living. Their use seems icertain to multiply astronomically with- in the next few years. The magnitude of the paper industry of the future is dependent upon our forests and our for- esters. Yale need to grow more treesi fast- er and at the same time learn how to uti- lize the wood we have more completely and economically. The solution of these two problems requires all the brains and imag- ination that we can bring to bear on them. In any case it is a comforting thought to know they are 'big enough to keep us all employed for many years to come. Left io right Prof. Libby, Dr. Nazzara, Dr. Scliuerch, Prof. Holmberg, Mr. lrlitchings, Mr. Church, Prof. Casey. Prof. O'Neil, Prof. Dono- frio. f22l

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ood eclmolocjq Du. l-Ixuuxv P. BROWN HIC American public is now cognizant of forestry as such, as the result of a long campaign in education initiated before the beginning of the twentieth century. The Society of American Foresters, the associa- tion of professional foresters in the United States, has just celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in the national capitol. H ence, forestry may now be considered as well launched among the professions. NVood technology is an important phase of forestryg it deals with the principal forest product, wood. Specifically, it is concerned with the study of the technical properties of wood, that is, with those properties which must be taken into consideration when wood is used for any purpose whatso- ever. Our forefathers arrived at the uses of wood largely by trial and error methods , with the infor- mation thus accumulated handed down to succeeding generations. Frequently this information was er- roneous and proved expensive in application, the more as the cost of wood has advanced. This has resulted in the 'birth of the science of wood technology, the scientific utilization of wood. Students undergoing training in wood technology are required to take courses the subject matter of which is directly pertinent to this natural product. lfn addition they are thoroughly grounded in bas- ic subjects such as physics, mathematics, statistics and chemistry which provide the information and the tools to essay the technical properties of wood for their worth. Among the practical responsibilities of a wood technologist is not only the ability to select the proper kind of wood for the purpose in view, knowing' its intrinsic properties in advance, but also the skill to select the proper stock of that kind of wood. As is to be expected, a tremendous backlog of information on the technical properties of wood has been built up to date. The scarcity of metals during Worlcl Wzir lf and the ready accessibility of wood as a suitable substitute under the proper conditions of inspection advanced wood technology very rapidly. However, -because of the exigencies of this period of national emergency, the research on wood was often hurried and far from conclusive. Since Worlcl Wai' Il, wood technology has continued to advance at a steady pace, with increasing emphasis on fundamental research. Students contemplating specialization in wood technology with a view to making it a life profes- sion quite naturally ask themselves what the future holds with respect to positions. The opportunities are good for the man with the proper aptitudes, with remuneration in proportion to abilityg he will be undergoing training as a wood technician, with considerable emphasis on the engineering approach. The analytical type of mind is a prime requisite, bespeaking as it does success in courses in mathemat- ics, physics and chemistry. A prospective wood technologist must -be the type of individual who not only wants to know that a thing is so but why it is 503 this last statement is highly important in gauging 'his possibilities of success in this field of endeavor. Re- search should 'have appeal, not as a vehicle to grind out a living, but as a horizon that ever beckons. Sealed from Inf! to right! Dr. Anderson, Dr. DeZeeuw, Dr. Brown, Dr. Harlow. Standing: Mr. Skaar, Mr. Core, Mr. Leney, Mr. Caldwell, Dr. Kitazawa, Mr. Cote. t21i

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gxfensfon epa tmenf RALPH G. UNGER ff llli success of an American forest conservation program depends largely upon how well Americans are informed regarding forestry mat- ters. 'l'he need is great for public opinion favorable to the wise use of Aint-i'ica's valuable forest resource. 'l'he ingenuity of the public relations forester is taxed almost to capacity these days. The challenge facing him is to meet the responsibility of keeping people informed about our forest situation and about current practices and policies to improve the situation. True, there is in- creased interest in forestry, but he must not fail to nourish this interest so that it will thrive and spread. The College has taken steps during the past few years to keep pace with the public's increased need and desire for useful information and guidance. The staff of the Department of Forest Exten- sion has been more than doubled to provide such service. lixisting programs have been continued, in some cases expanded. Lectures before groups and extensive radio and television programs carry the forestry message all over our state. Exhibits at fairs, shows, and conferences call further attention to the importance of forestry in the lives of our citizens. New services include aid to l'I11lll1lfZlCl.UTCI'S of wood products and a tree pest identification and information center. lncreased requests for publications have resulted in the addition of another trained and experienced journalist, 'l'he 'business of furnishing useful information and creating a favorable attitude toward forestry is no-xv being carried on in a changing environment. lt has been found profitable to make forest pro- ducts fuom trees grown on land previously cut over. There is less dependence each year on original forests and more on forests that have grown during the past half-century. Technology has brought more and more forest products into daily life and has evolved a whole new forest economy. Forestry is popular in the industrial world because it is profitable. lforest recreation - camping, hiking, hunting, and fishing - are all-important in an urban, in- dustrial state such as New York. The water conserved by forest cover and the soil held back by forests on slopes are important to conserving natural resou1'CeS. Vtfith ilqie in-W glppl-Q-qigiiion uf fm-Q-gt values, people look to this College more frequently and in greater numbers for help and guidance. They also expect the College to produce trained leaders and administrators of An1erica's natural wealth program. The old-style centralized headquarters from which all propaganda, publicity, and public infor- mation in forestry Clmlmmwlv is he-ing given up. The new organization, already started in New York State, features regionalizefl public education and consultation centers. The forestry extension :worker is to work nearer his public than has been true in the past. l-le will, in fact, live i11 the same com- munity with them. Another new development is the employment of public relations foresters by industries. Expansion of this trend brings a need for more formal training of forestry students suitably qualified for t-his work. General forestry training coupled with courses in public education techniques is a development already in sight. Left I0 right Prof. Unger, Dr. Miller, Mr. llavis, Mr. Mc-yering, l'rof. ldonsl-ed, Mr. Roche. 'sg Ni-,f f l Yi 3' ,S I I V A ,Qs Ewa A .' ,i if ' . ' .57 34,3 '- I 23 I i Ia 'J' LV' ,Ig I - tg, ,I . , f . A A+ , .3 , r. hw ,Q .f, , ,, - A ,f - - I 1733