Balance must be found between preserving the wilderness and using up the natural resources of the earth. Aldo Leopold's short story, Thinking Like a Mountain, shows that a balance is important by referring to the wolf-less mountains with all the trees defoliated by the unchecked deer. The mountain is sure to die and with it dies all the inhabitants that live and depend on the mountain. Once the mountain is bare, it can start the regeneration process again. The mountain will take many years to regenerate and once again become suitable for living creatures. Nature will always try to return to its balanced state.
             Humanity was never given the job of keeping nature in balance. Humanity took up the job after exploiting nature and then realizing that what was happening would eventually lead to destruction of humans and nature. Nature has always had its own way of balancing creation and destruction before humans came into the picture. Leopold writes, "The cowman who cleans his range of wolves does not realize that he is taking over the wolf's job of trimming the herd to fit the range" (p.342). In this sentence, Leopold shows humanity as throwing nature out of balance. The cowman's actions result in dust bowls and erosion that lead to the unbalance of nature.
             Determining the value of the wilderness is sometimes hard when comparing it to the value of humans. To survive, humans must depend on nature to nurture and protect, as well as support their livelihood. Sometimes, humans forget that they need nature; nature does not need man. Nature provides natural resources that are usually non-reusable and even reusable resources can become obsolete due to over use caused by either nature or man. Now, using resources wisely and efficiently has become a necessity for continued human existence. Examples of using resources wisely and efficiently include recycling, select-cutting timber, utilizing thermal and wind power, and c...