This week at W.I.S.E. we are featuring some of the most advanced and cutting edge science and thought in the field of fire ecology. The setting is Canada, but the implications touch every country on every continent.
While all that we are posting this week might seem mundane and esoteric to the uninitiated, to us it is the most exciting thing we have ever done, blogwise. And we are proud as peacocks about it. Keep your eyes (monitor screen) on the Forest and Fire Sciences Colloquium. Pure gold will be posted there this week.
We hope you enjoy the posts, papers, and books reviewed as much as we do.
December 12, 2007 | Leave a Comment | Topic: Introduction
The issues facing rural America are national in scope. It is not just megafires in Idaho, wolves in New Mexico, or elk in Yellowstone. Megafires are happening in every state in the West (and last spring in Georgia as well). Wolves, bears, and lions are attacking livestock and people across the country. Populations of elk, deer, and other large herbivores are crashing everywhere. And everywhere government agencies large and small are laying waste to the landscape, lifeways, the economy, and the culture.
A kind of madness has infected America. Our institutions of higher learning have devolved into political conspiracy making and science has been abandoned. Open inquiry has been quashed in favor of political correctness, adherence to a brand of politics that cannot withstand open scrutiny or debate. Our elected leaders cower in silence or pay obeisance to superstition and eco-hysteria. We live in fear of the next disaster to be perpetrated upon us by our own government.
Perhaps madness is the wrong word. A better word might be fatheadedness, the deliberate dumbing down of individuals, whether through TV, public schools, the Mass Media, or simple personal choice.
Examples abound. After devastating fires in San Diego in 2003, absolutely nothing was done to alleviate the hazard. Then this year the fires returned. In the aftermath of the 2007 fires, nothing will again be done. And megafires will return again, soon, as a consequence. Millions of people are at risk, yet their own democratic governments are hamstrung and can only spout excuses and place blame on the victims.
December 12, 2007 | Leave a Comment | Topic: Introduction
When Gail Kimbell was first appointed as USFS Chief, I welcomed her. I wrote (at SOS Forests No. 1) [here]:
SOS Forests welcomes you to the Chieftainship of the U.S. Forest Service. We salute your prior accomplishments, share in the joy of your appointment, and wish you every possible success.
And we really mean that. We really do wish your tenure as Chief to be successful. It is going to be a difficult road, though. The deck is stacked against you, but we will help you all we can.
I even went so far as to send that statement to her directly via email. Gail did not respond, but I didn’t expect her to. I also included some advice to aid her Chieftanship:
First, please use the word “forests” in speeches and writings. You are going to be Chief of the U.S. Forest Service. The ground you will oversee is neither “timberlands” nor “wildlands.” It is forest, forests, or forestland. Please refer to it as such.
This is easy to do, costs you nothing, and will demonstrate your core values. (Not to mention that failing to do so will handicap you right away, and come back to haunt you later, too.)
Second, cancel the Whoofoo program. Whoofoo’s (wildland fire use fires) are accidental fires in accidental locations started by lightning during the height of the fire season. Such fires should be suppressed with rapid initial attack, not left to burn. Whoofoo’s led to enormous and expensive tragedies like the Warm Fire, the Tripod Fire, the Tatoosh Fire, the Middle Fork Fire, and many others last year.
Whoofoo’s are the renamed equivalents of “prescribed natural fires” which caused catastrophes such as the 1988 incineration of Yellowstone National Park. The lack of rapid initial response with adequate firefighting forces was directly responsible for the 500,000 acre Biscuit Fire of 2003 and dozens of other mega fires in the last two decades. Poor response has been ultimately responsible for every modern mega fire, as a matter of fact.
Gail, please terminate the Whoofoo’s. If you accomplish nothing else, that will be enough to yield an honorable legacy.
Third, please bury the Audit (the 2006 IG Report on Large Fire Suppression Costs). It is stupid and worthless and should NOT be guiding USFS policy. The Audit recommendations, if followed, will cripple fire suppression nationally, get a lot of people killed, as well as destroy forests, farms, ranches, homes, and whole communities via holocaust. Bunch it, shred it, round file it, bury it in the backyard. Whatever, make the Audit go away.
Fourth, please initiate a national program to develop natural histories for every National Forest in the System. The histories should reach back at least 10,000 years, and should document the actual, historic, forest development pathways that occurred, in reality, location by location.
Gail failed to follow any of those tips. Indeed, she went out of her way to violate my well-meaning advice with gusto.
Not only does Gail not refer to forests as forests, but she now wants to extend the intellectually bankrupt notion of “wildlands” to 400 million acres of private land!
That is so stupid and vile as to defy all reason.
She also has promoted, not canceled, the whoofoo program, and deliberately burned down millions of acres of forest in her own Region in her very first year.
Gail Kimbell should be terminated with prejudice today. I don’t care if she is a woman or not. Her brand of dis-competency is intolerable.
No doubt none of that will happen. Not one individual in Congress will call for any kind of investigation of Gail Kimbell, or for hearings, or even issue a statement of concern. Congress is composed of slime worms, in the main. Geo Bush will not do anything. He appointed Gail after all, and besides that, his administration has collapsed, in no small part because the Slime Worms of Congress have undermined it.
Gail Kimbell must driven out by public protest. I call upon everyone who cares about forests to raise your voice in opposition to Gail Kimbell. I beg you to demand her immediate removal from the USFS. If we are going to save our forests , homes, and very lives, we need to abate the hazard. Gail Kimbell IS the hazard, and her tenure as Chief of the USFS must be terminated BEFORE the next fire season.
December 10, 2007 | 3 Comments | Topic: Federal forest policy
US Forest Service Chief Gail Kimbell has decided that her extreme mismanagement of National Forests is not enough. Now she wishes to impose catastrophic fire and wasteland desolation upon the rest of the USA, too.
Last Thursday the glorified former administrative assistant declared a national plan to extend “wildlands” designation to 400 million acres of private property [here].
“If people have an incentive to hold on to wildlands (rather than develop them), we as a society benefit from that,” she [Gail Kimbell] said in an interview. “We all benefit from keeping wildlands wild.”
This is an outrageous statement. Private property is NOT “wildlands” nor is it wild. Indeed, USFS property is neither “wildlands” nor wild, either.
Gail Kimbell burned down 9.3 million acres of America this summer in her misguided efforts to impose desolation and putrefaction upon America, in the name of “wildlands”. The USFS burned a giant block of 1250 square miles of Idaho forests in the name of “wild.” They burned thousands of homes in California with megafires.
In this her first year on the job, Wild Gail burned more acres and homes than anyone in history, save for Dale Bosworth in 2006.
What in the bloody hell is “open space” anyway? When did my property become “wildlands.” Why is it the policy of the USFS to impose their horrendous mismanagement upon 400 million acres of private property?
Haven’t you done enough evil destruction of forests, Gail?
And they are FORESTS, not “wildlands.”
Gail Kimbell is the worst USFS Chief in history. She must be fired immediately.
“Our vision for the 21st century is an interconnected network of open space across the landscape — one that supports healthy ecosystems, renewable resources and high quality of life for Americans,” she said.
What kind of “quality of life” did you impose on South Lake Tahoe, Gail? Do you really believe that burning down 250 homes improved the “quality of life” for anybody?
Your vision sucks to the Moon, dear.
The conservation plan takes effect immediately and does not require congressional approval.
By fascist, authoritarian, non-democratic fiat Gail Kimbell has declared war on the private property owners of America. Who does that FASCIST PIG think she is?
What in the hell is going on George? Evidently George Bush has also declared war on America. No president in history has done more to destroy forests, economies, and public and private American property than George Bush. His record of destruction of our National Forests by megafire is unprecedented.
Now the Bush Administration wishes to impose ever more holocaust on private property, too.
Why? The stated reason:
As homes and shopping malls proliferate, the United States loses about 6,000 acres of open space every day — four acres per minute.
This statement is horrendously false. We are currently experiencing a housing crisis as the home mortgage and home construction industries are in free fall. Furthermore, nobody but nobody is building homes or those awful, dreaded “shopping malls” in the fricking wilderness.
But just to make sure that the pain is permanent, George and Gail have decided to inflict absurd and insane regulatory oppression far outside the imperial estate.
Preserving open space is one of her top four goals, Kimbell said. The others are improving forest health to reduce the risk of wildfire, controlling invasive species and managing outdoor recreation.
When it comes to reducing the risk of wildfire, Gail Kimbell is a total, abject failure. Ditto all her other “goals.”
“Growth and development in wildlands increases the risk of wildfire for people and property, affects the Forest Service’s ability to manage the public lands … and reduces the capacity of privately owned land to provide water, recreation and habitat,” Kimbell said.
There is NO development in wildlands, Gail. You are smoking that Beltway crack, again. What in the fricking hell are “wildlands” anyway?
The USFS has a Let It Burn policy for their lands. That policy breeds megafires that roar over the legal boundaries into private lands. Massive destruction of innocent lives and properties ensue. The holocausts destroy homes and vegetation, kill wildlife, destroy habitat, ruin watersheds, foul water, and cripple recreation opportunities.
Gail Kimbell has proven that she cannot manage USFS lands. Indeed, her mismanagement is extreme. Now she is spreading by authoritarian order her nutzoid incendiarist ways to everywhere.
NO, no, no, no, no, no, no!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Stop Incinerating America!!!!!!!!!!!!
I vote to kick Gail Kimbell out of the Government, and as far as I am concerned, clean out of the country.
FIRE GAIL KIMBELL NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!
December 9, 2007 | 8 Comments | Topic: Federal forest policy
It’s semi-official: not one candidate for President from either party has taken any stance or issued any analysis regarding forests, forest fires, predator control, or any environmental problem, except for global warming.
All the candidates, except for Fred Thompson and Ron Paul, are going to “fix” the global warming “problem” by taxing the American people through the roof and other vicious nonsense brutalities. Fred and Ron are Skeptics (somewhat less opprobrious than a Denier). Osama Obama, on the other hand, has promised to “reduce the amount of carbon in gasoline.” Poor Obama; he is evidently physics-challenged. I wonder what kind of grades he got in science.
But as for our forest crisis, the Pack is completely in the dark, out to lunch, and struck dumb. Not one of them has a clue in creation that we are experiencing the worst fire seasons in 50 years, that the USFS is crumbling to ashes, that our National Forests are being destroyed by holocaust, and that federal fires are jumping legal boundaries and burning into rural and urban property that DOES NOT BELONG to the Feds.
And no improvement is expected. No matter who wins the election, our forests and Rural America lose.
And what a bitch of a situation that is, again. For my part, I am boycotting all races where both or all candidates are clueless imbeciles. Voter Boycott. I’m not going to vote, and I plan to make a Big Stink about it, too.
December 7, 2007 | Leave a Comment | Topic: Politics and politicians
In our first manifestation (SOSF original version) we were limited by the single site structure. Now we have multiple subsites and plenty of room to post the daily news-of-the-day about forests, fire, and wildlife.
We do that [here].
We feel we must post this apologia though. The news-of-the-day is consistently horrible. That is not our fault, but posting it is. Sorry. We think it might be useful, and perhaps it is, but it is not fun.
December 7, 2007 | Leave a Comment | Topic: Introduction
There is a new environmental organization in Montana, the Big Sky Coalition. Founded by residents of Darby, Hamilton, and other communities near the Bitterroot National Forest, the Big Sky Coalition describes itself as “environmentalists with common sense.”
In their own words, from the BSC website [here]:
Big Sky Coalition represents a diverse group of Montanans who believe that current forest management policies are resulting in annual catastrophic fires. These fires present a negative impact on the health and economic interest of Montana citizens.
Representing what we believe to be a silent majority of Montanans with common sense, we hope to become a unified voice of reason that will provide a more balanced approach to environmental issues. We are prepared to be your advocate and fight for your rights!
Our mission is to work with federal and state agencies to bring about changes in the current fire management program.
A recent meeting hosted by the BSC in Hamilton drew 650 people. The Clark Fork Chronicle reported [here] that “the crowd was overwhelmingly in support of increased logging on the national forests as a way to mitigate catastrophic wildfires.”
Organizer Sonny LaSalle explained, “This is just not the timber industry saying, ‘We need more logs.’ This is the common everyday citizen saying, ‘I’m tired of the situation the way it is. It’s only going to get worse and we want something done.’ We believe there is something that can be done, and that the silent majority needs to become the vocal majority.”
That silent majority has felt disenfranchised and helpless, he said, watching from the sidelines while the courts and Forest Service interact only with litigants.
“We in the Coalition honestly believe there are things we can do, and the way we can do it is by speaking with one large voice to our elected officials at the state and the national levels. Then we can get some changes that need to be made. That takes a lot of people making as much noise as possible so the elected officials know this is just not one or two folks,” he said.
The Bitterroot and other Montana (and Idaho) National Forests were raked by megafires last summer, the worst fire season in the region since 1910. Indeed, the Great Fires of 1910 gave rise to millions of acres of lodgepole pines that are 90-ish today. Lodgepole pine does not live much beyond 100, and the stands of today are moribund thickets packed with beetle-kill that present a regional fire hazard unprecedented in history.
And the US Forest Service has proved themselves unable to deal with the situation. Part of the problem is a lack of leadership and direction from Congress. The Big Sky Coalition hopes to spur Congress into action.
The BSC is new, just a couple of months old, but they are already having an impact. Eco-litigious, anti-forest groups such as the WildWest Institute (formerly the Native Forest Network) have attacked the BSC from inception. However, the Native Forest Network filed 236 timber sale appeals from 1997 through 2002, according to a 2003 study by Northern Arizona University’s Ecological Restoration Institute, making it difficult for that lawyered-up, sue-happy group to deny their longstanding obstruction and sabotage of forests.
The BSC holds promise. It’s grassroots, political, and the members are angry at the destruction of their local economies and landscapes. Congress should pay heed.
Rural citizens are VERY UNHAPPY with Congressional incineration of America’s forests. Moreover, at least 85 percent of all citizens, rural and urban, are in favor of active management to save our National Forests, according to polls.
Perhaps the Big Sky Coalition can get through to a deaf, dumb, and blind Congress, and spur them into some common sense. We hope so. SOS Forests kudos to the Big Sky Coalition, and best wishes for their every success.
December 6, 2007 | Leave a Comment | Topic: Federal forest policy
by John F. Marker
[John Marker is a retired Forest Service District Ranger, Fire Management, and Information Officer and a co-founder of Wildland Firefighter Magazine. This article was first published in National Forestry, (Sp ‘07, here), the magazine of the National Forestry Association, 374 Maple Ave East, Suite 310, Vienna, VA 22180.]
Reaffirmation of the mission of the National Forests
The Organic Act of 1897 was explicit in describing the reasons for establishing the National Forest System: to provide a sustainable supply of water and timber for the use of citizens, and to allow other uses that did not diminish the ability of the forests to provide the primary resources. However, legal and policy debates over management of the lands for the past 40 years or so have clouded the original intent of the Act. Today, in my opinion, few people understand the fundamental reason the National Forests were established, including some agency employees and too many political leaders.
It seems to me the future of the forests rests upon some form of new top-level federal process to clarify both the purpose of the forests and the direction that their management should be heading. A second component of the process must be a public awareness program to promote understanding of the National Forests’ essential natural resources role, which is essential before successful land management can be carried out. Clearly, a serious effort needs to be made to resolve the endless controversy surrounding the concept of scientific forest management, and a clarification of the mission.
Even if there were no controversy, a National Forest mission review would seem appropriate, considering that it’s been 100 years since the last one was carried out. Over the past century, the country’s natural resources needs and desires have changed dramatically. In the 1890s, for example, people were predicting a national timber famine, which was a major motivator for creating the National Forest system.
December 4, 2007 | 5 Comments | Topic: Federal forest policy
W.I.S.E. is underway. Our intention is to build, over the next few months, the premier online library for forest, fire, and the environmental sciences, with emphasis on the New Paradigm.
The knowledge uncovered, displayed, and explained will be presented to the World At Large for the instruction of Mankind and for the benefit of all creatures and landscapes of this Our Shared Planet.
That’s all very good and promising, but our new schema is much more insidious and revolutionary than just that. The Deep Strategy involves multi-party communication.
December 3, 2007 | Leave a Comment | Topic: Introduction
