Popular science monthly . ng sand dunes of the Columbia Riverregion and at other places alongthe Pacific Coast, the UnitedStates must follow the plan adoptedby France many years ago. Itmust build one great dune in aneffort to eliminate many smallerones. This is the verdict of ForestService experts who have made aworld-wide study of sand dunesand methods employed to combat theSince the planting of forests has beenfound to be the most effective means ofchecking the encroachments of sand theproblem is one that comes within thejurisdiction of the United States ForestService. In the lower Columbia
Popular science monthly . ng sand dunes of the Columbia Riverregion and at other places alongthe Pacific Coast, the UnitedStates must follow the plan adoptedby France many years ago. Itmust build one great dune in aneffort to eliminate many smallerones. This is the verdict of ForestService experts who have made aworld-wide study of sand dunesand methods employed to combat theSince the planting of forests has beenfound to be the most effective means ofchecking the encroachments of sand theproblem is one that comes within thejurisdiction of the United States ForestService. In the lower Columbia River valley,l)oth in Washington and Oregon, sand(huus are destroying farms and orchardsand are changing country of great fertilityinto waste land. Bearing orchards havebeen completely engulfed by dunes andl)uildings ha\^e been buried to the roofline. Railroads have suffered heavilyand have spent large sums in efTorts tokeep their tracks from being buried. A hundred years ago France wasconfnjnted with a problem equally as. serious. More than 300 miles of coast-line on the Baj of Biscay was beingblown inland by the winds of the Atlan-tic Ocean. The most fertile portion ofthe country was threatened. Eventuallysome one hit upon a plan of building agreat lateral dune along the entirecoast as a means of checking themovement of the sand. About sexcntyyears ago France set to work on thisgreat task. She only startc(f the buildingof the tlune, howe\er, when Naturetook up the work and completed it. 15)8 Popular Science Monthly 100 The entire coast-line was fringed bya fence consisting of posts driven in theground at close inter\als, and llie spacesbetween tliem were interwoven withwillow branches and brush. Soon thestrong winds blowing in from the oceanbanked a great wall against this fenceand eventually it was entirely coveredwith sand. Then a second line of fencewas erected on the small lateral dunethus created. In time this fence wasco\ered by the sand which banked upagainst it. This
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectscience, bookyear1872
