Essential oils are natural and have many amazing health benefits. Some calm anxiety and insomnia while others soothe burns and help wounds heal faster. They are nature’s perfume and people are in love. We all enjoy natural scents and chemical-free options. However, there are certain essential oils that are putting the environment and rare ecosystems at risk. It takes millions of rose petals to produce an ounce of rose oil.
To create one pound of lemon essential oil you need 1,500 lemons. There is really no way around the volume needed to create such small amounts of essential oils. The differences lie in how sustainable the sources are for specific types of essential oils. Certain oils are derived from trees that are several decades old. The only way to extract the oils is from either completely destroying the tree or slowly depleting it of its nutrients through extraction.
Brief History
The use of essential oils can be dated back over 20,000 years ago. The use of plants and their oils for medical purposes was found in cave paintings in France. It probably dates back farther than 20,000 years ago but there has yet to be any discoveries indicating this. Essential oils were later recorded in ancient Egypt being used for cosmetics, medicine, and aromatherapy. Usage of essential oils then traveled to China then India and then Europe.
Resources were used differently during these times. There were no huge manufacturing facilities expressing, steaming and distilling mountains of plants. It took a great deal of hard work and sweat to produce a small amount of these oils. They were used sparingly for intentional reasons. Additionally, populations were drastically smaller, demand was smaller and there were no companies sourcing essential oils.
Sandalwood
Sandalwood is produced through the steam distillation of pieces of the sandalwood tree. Essentially, you need to destroy the entire tree to extract the essential oil. This oil is highly expensive because the more mature the tree is the better quality the oil is, 30 years old is the time harvesting can begin. The high demand and forever increasing price of sandalwood is resulting in illegal foresting and depletion of resources.
Unskilled poachers are raiding farms and stealing trees. The issue is that these poachers have no knowledge of which parts to get and when a tree is ready to be harvested. They are leaving behind the most valuable parts of the tree which are left to die and wasted.
Frankincense
Frankincense is produced from the resin of a species of tree that only grows in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East. The tree is sliced and the resin drips out. The more cuts to a tree the less resin is produced. This essential oil has been used for thousands of years and is mentioned in the Bible as is was gifted to baby Jesus. It was always ethically sourced up until recent years.
The demand has skyrocketed and it is impossible to keep up with. This results in trees being overly tapped and supplies dwindling. The trees are located in poverty nations which means that the people go to desperate lengths to source the resin. Some even die trekking to remote areas in an attempt to harvest frankincense.
Spikenard
This essential oil is derived from the Nardostachys jatamansi plant and found in the Himalayan regions of Nepal, India, and Bhutan. The essential oil is extracted from the roots making it a very wasteful process as the entire plant dies. The difficulty of this plant is that it normally grows in rocky environments at very high altitudes and is difficult to harvest.
It was first listed as endangered in 1997 and in 2015, it was listed as critically endangered. Wild spikenard populations are down an astonishing 80% over the past 10 years. The high demand mixed with extreme difficulty farming the plant is why national protection agencies fear the worst.
Agarwood
The aquilaria malaccensis or agarwood tree is used to extract resin for perfumes and essential oils. This evergreen species is located in North India, Bangladesh and Bhutan. The trees are intentionally infected with a mold which makes the tree produce resin as a form of protection. This resin is what harvesters extract.
The main issue is that not all trees are infected with the mold at the same time. Poachers who frequent agarwood trees have no idea which trees are infected. This means that they cut down as many as possible killing the uninfected healthy trees.
Agarwood has been placed on the critically endangered list with a population decline of 80% in 150 years. Experts believe that extinction has already begun in certain areas.
Japanese Cypress/ Hinoki
A type of Japanese cypress tree called Chamaecyparis obtusa, with closely related species in Taiwan. The tree is on the endangered species list because of such vast deforestation in a short period of time. The trees that were once very old, large and sprawling everywhere are now almost solely found at harvesting plantations.
With the excessively slow growth rate of this tree and high desire for both, it’s oil and limber, it is no surprise that it is endangered. It is considered a sacred and powerful tree in Japanese culture with many people using its wood to build houses, temples, and decorations. The tree that once had an opportunity to grow for 400 years can no longer achieve such a long lifetime.
Rosewood
This essential oil is harvested through the distillation of wood chips from the Aniba rosaeodora or Aniba parviflora trees. They are located in the upper half region of South American. For every pound of wood, only 1% is actually turned into oil. The trees used for this oil are actually on the endangered list because the population has declined over 50% in the last 10 years.
The highly desired rosewood essential oil has created a demand that is unrealistic. Trees are illegally cut down in ways that make it impossible for the trees to regenerate. Poachers find trees in isolated areas and are long gone before anyone realizes what happened. The sky-high demand and huge selling price for this resource continue to fuel illegal activity.
Palo Santo/ Holy Wood
Palo Santo is harvested from a specific type of tree located in Central sn South America. The tree needs to be dead and left to mature for at least 2 years. The oils are extracted through steam distillation. It was ancient ties to Peruvian Shamans who would use it during ceremonies for spiritual cleansing.
While there are some sustainable sources of Palo Santo, most are not. Most are depleting forests at a rapid rate and forever altering ecosystems. Areas of Peru and Ecuador where trees were once vast and dense are now scarce and almost non-existent.
What You Can Do
No one is asking anyone to give up their beloved essential oils or surrender the natural healing effects they offer. The real solution is to use certain oils very sparingly and for special occasions. Most people love sandalwood so instead of using it every day try only once a week. Instead of being excessive and overindulgent look at essential oils as tiny gifts that are very valuable. Nurture them and reserve them for special moments.
Being knowledgeable about how essential oils are harvested and the immense resources needed to manufacture them should create a higher sense of respect and appreciation. Preserving these oils will allow your children and grandchildren to also partake in the wonders of sandalwood and frankincense.
