Folks in California are offended by Trump’s remarks about thinning forests (surprise). Recently, New Mexico almost lost the town of Cimarron. An historic ranch lost 14 buildings. CBS news stated the reason for the intensity of the fires – “trees needed to be thinned.”
A report from the U.S. Forest Service in 2013 stated specifically that “A century ago, a ponderosa pine forest may have had 25 mature trees per acre. Today the same forest may have over 1,000 trees on that acre. Packed trees are smaller, weaker, more disease prone and susceptible to insect attack.” Their words.
Virtually all our ponderosa are dying or dead.
Pine beetles could once have been stopped by clear-cutting and burning, as was the case in the early ’80s in Turkey Creek Canyon. A cousin who was raised there said the forestry clear-cut the diseased trees, burned them and replanted. Thirty years later, there was a healthy forest.
It is the self-proclaimed environmental experts who screech when the Forestry Service tries to thin trees.
Four miles up Middle Mountain Road are millions of dead ponderosa. Every tree along the upper part of Florida Road has beetles. Dead aspen still abound from 2002.
On the 416 Fire, retardant drops were stopped (per news reports) as they couldn’t get through the tree canopy to ground fires.
Instead of griping about the train, how about we shut down those who’ve created this crisis.
Denise Murray
Durango
