Living in an area of the country where tree farms dot thelandscape, providing a renewable resource for paper productsnationwide, we sometimes find ourselves reminding folks that”killing trees” is not completely wrong.

We recently chastised a business friend who lives in anotherpart of the country. An e-mail sent by the individual had a tagline at the end of the message, which suggested that the reader notprint the e-mail unless completely necessary – for doing so killedtrees. In a return message, we reminded her that in the South wegrow trees like the Midwest grows corn!

We recently noticed a sign imprinted on a paper towel dispenserthat too suggested limited use of paper towels in order to save thelife of trees. We all have seen the electric hand blowers in restrooms that suggest usage saves trees – it doesn’t mention that theelectricity used to produce the hot air sucks up natural gas, coalor other non-renewable resources.

At an area store recently, we noticed the effort to sellreusable containers made of a woven cloth as environmentallyfriendly. Expensive to buy for the consumer and excellent way toreplace those terrible plastic bags that are not environmentallyfriendly – but paper bags are cheaper, economically friendly andthe by-product of trees grown right here in Mississippi.

It seems that “killing trees” is a growing mantra of a nationneeding to be more environmentally friendly, but those caught up bythe trendy slogan should be reminded that – at least in this partof the country – our trees are a renewable resource that providesjobs; saves non-renewable energy; and that the growth of new treesis good for the environment.