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Discusses how big trees contribute to the quality of the environment and the quality of our life
WHY BIG TREES ARE IMPORTANT
State and national champion trees capture our imagination for their size, strength, and often their age. They speak to our soul - reminding us of our connection to the world in which we live.
Big trees make us think of the baby birds they have sheltered, the fawns that have wobbled past on young legs, and the bears and cougars that have stretched up to rub a back or sharpen a claw. Some big trees have lived long enough to witness the movement of native peoples, early pioneer settlers, and more recent emigres across the landscape. To reach champion status, big trees have survived huge winds and fires, and many have stood through rumbling earthquake and other notable natural disturbances.
As symbols of all the good work trees do for the quality of the environment and the quality of our life, big trees focus our attention on important every day realities. They remind us that trees provide cooling shade and places for wildlife to perch and nest. They sequester carbon dioxide and trap pollutants. They purify water, moderate drought and flood, and create an ecosystem dynamic in which streams can build deep pools and clean gravels where salmon and steelhead can successfully spawn and rear.
Although most trees can outlive us – 100 to 200 years is not unusual, and some were mature when the Declaration of Independence was signed – they eventually succumb to age, disease and insects, wind, rain, and drought. And when they do, 
these dead trees keep on contributing. Dead trees help hold and build soils, shade and nurture newly sprouted trees, and when they fall in a creek, they provide important habitat for salmon, steelhead, and other aquatic species. Big trees bear witness to, and make us aware of, the march of time.
All too often, big trees succumb to the chainsaw buzz of development – where their removal from the land cuts short the tree’s contribution to a healthy landscape. All trees work hard to improve our environment. It's our responsibility to maintain a healthy environment that allows trees to grow to champion status.
