Who or What Is Really Responsible for the Huge Forest Fires in California?
By The Federalist. . .Let us start with this simple aspect. Forest fires are a normal thing. Often caused by lightning or other natural causes, they are God’s way of clearing forests. In those natural forest clearances, the wildlife that exists in them are threatened or their habitat is destroyed. What has changed is mankind’s intervention in the natural process. The question is, what other factors may be causing the change in the intensity of recent forest fires?
We also came armed with a thought. If you believe that global warming is making life more challenging for forest management, then you should support proper forest clearance. Otherwise we will be left with even more intense fires. . .
Speaking with Chris French, the Acting Deputy Chief of Forest Service (FS), we received a primer on what is really going on with forest fires today.
When asked what he believes is the primary cause of the intense forest fires, Mr. French’s immediate response was “Forests are overstocked. There are more trees than 100 years ago.” He went on to say that part of the problem was the Forest Service’s good work in the recent past stopping forest fires. This meant, however, that their focus was largely directed away from forest maintenance, which caused the elements that fuel a fire like underbrush, dead trees or more density to occur. . .
Over the recent years as forest fires became more intense, they spent more money on suppression and less on clearance causing a vicious cycle of less money on clearance. At this point French stated that it was projected that 60% of their budget went toward suppression leaving fewer precious dollars for clearance. Recent Congressional budget bills have increased the Forest Service budget providing additional funding for clearance, thus hopefully stopping as many fires from happening and less money spent on suppression. (Read more from “Who or What Is Really Responsible for the Huge Forest Fires in California?” HERE)
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Volunteers Flock to Northern California Fire Zone to Lend a Helping Hand
By NBC News. It took Frank Hilscher only a half-hour to figure out what to do as the scale of the Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in California history, began to dawn on him.
Hilscher first heard about the fire on Nov. 8, the day it ignited near Poe Dam, on the North Fork Feather River in Butte County. (Authorities said Sunday night that the fire has killed 77 people and left 993 yet to be accounted for, a drop from almost 1,300 on Saturday.)
“I woke up the next morning, and they talked about how devastating it was,” Hilscher said in an interview Sunday. “I sat around for about 30 minutes and thought about what we could do to help.”
Hilscher, 37, owns the Sexy Panda Food Truck, which sells Asian-themed street food in Sacramento, the state capital. So he called up Alex Hader, who manages the truck, and headed to a restaurant store, where he emptied out his business account.
Soon, “we filled up the truck and went on our way,” bound for Chico, about 90 miles north. They’ve been going 24-7 ever since, handing out supplies and serving thousands of meals a day to victims of the fire from the parking lot of a Walmart, Hilscher said. (Read more from “Volunteers Flock to Northern California Fire Zone to Lend a Helping Hand” HERE)
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