There’s a large wilderness park not far from my home. As a youth, I went there to paddle my canoe. Wanting to go back to nature a bit, I left the propane at home and hoped to use wood to build a fire. Being this was a forest wilderness, this seemed rational. Once there, I realized others had the same idea. Almost no underbrush could be found near the campsites. Trees were devoid of branches up to 3 metres from the ground. Other campers, with the same idea, had already denuded the area for their own campfires.
When we need energy, we will go to great lengths to acquire it. After all, it is essential for our lives and technology. Petroleum and oil have the most utility today. Once their stores are exhausted, our hunger directs us to natural gas. On its demise, we go for coal. After digging all of it from the ground, what next? Trees (also called biomass) are the only remaining store of energy. But if we satisfy our energy needs with trees, where will the birds nest? How will ecosystems continue? Without ecosystems, how will we continue?
Our thirst for energy can dictate our actions. The future may not necessarily be best served with this defining our direction.