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Effect of wildfires
Essay on controlled wildfires
Essay on Effects of Wildfires on Forest Ecosystems
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"Controlled Fires"
Wildfires, "Controlled' wildfires specifically, they are said to help the environment and reduce chances for more extreme fires by eliminating hazardous fuels, but in reality they can cause more problems than they stop them. Fires are unpredictable and cannot be "Controlled," they can cause nearby homes to go up in flames and send smoke and ash into the air affecting residents near the area. Some may say they actually promote growth for trees and plants, but what science says is that fire actually does the exact opposite to plants and trees causing destruction to habitats and food for animals. Clearly controlled fires are a bad idea for the environment and people around us.
Fire plays a huge role in natural forests. The let it burn policy allows natural fires to burn unless, they threaten people, property, or endangered species. This policy allows the years and years of kindling that has fallen and piled up on the forest floor to burn up in smaller fires, instead of having huge devastating fire like the ones that burning for months in 1910 and 1988. When the west was first settled, forests were thinned by lumber companies that logged the trees and burned the logging debris, and by ranchers looking to increase pasture land. The last herder coming out of the mountains would set a fire to ensure good forage for the next year.
In making the decisions to protect people’s lives from hazards and disasters, evacuations sometimes become necessary. Of course early in the reaction to the incident, or the response phase, this may become a decision for local and state emergency managers. The San Diego, California wildfire which occurred in October 2007 caused a large scale evacuation. This essay is an analysis, and identification of lessons learned from the evacuation incident. As well a plan of personal recommendations and improvements will be made based on information covered in the National Housing strategy, and Robert Stafford Act.
Virtually everywhere in the United States is affected to one degree of another by wildland fires. Even if a community is not directly involved with the fire itself, chances are that some of its members have gone to help fight wildland fires in other areas of the country by providing manpower, financial support, or other humanitarian aid.
Prescribed fire is a controlled burn of an area done by a team of experienced or educated people in a grassland or forested area. This type of burn is intended to help the health of plant and animal species and restore them to their native state. When certain areas that need to be burned so often do not get burned, they can be a hazard to the ecosystem in which it presides. A forest can get over grown and thick which will create more fuel for a wildfire that can destroy a forest community. In grassland a controlled burn, or prescribed burn, can help eliminate invasive species that can take over grasslands that are harmful to the more desirable plants. This type of fire can be seen as harmful and a disaster by many people, but it has great benefits on the areas in which it is done.
As people of the twenty-first century, we are all too familiar with the frequent occurrence of wildfires in our nation’s forests. Each year millions of acres of woodlands are destroyed in brutal scorches. It has been estimated that 190 million acres of rangelands in the United States are highly susceptible to catastrophic fires (www.doi.gov/initiatives/forest.html.). About a third of these high-risk forests are located in California (www.sfgate.com). These uncontrollable blazes not only consume our beautiful forests but also the wildlife, our homes and often the lives of those who fight the wildfires. The frequency of these devastating fires has been increasing over the years. In fact, in the years 2000 and 2002, it has been reported that the United States has faced its worst two years in fifty years for mass destruction fires (www.doi.gov/initiatives/forest.html.). The increased natural fuels buildup coupled with droughts have been a prevailing factor in contributing to our wildfires and unhealthy forests (www.blm.gov/nhp/news/releases/pages/2004/pr040303_forests.html). Due to the severity of these wildfires, several regulations and guidelines have been implemented to save our forests. In fact, the President himself has devised a plan in order to restore our forests and prevent further destruction of our woodlands.
It is so sad to see the horror of forest fires and how they corrupt our beautiful land. So much damage comes out of what started so small. At least 603 square miles of land were burned in the early stages of the Arizona fire only a couple of years ago (BBC 2). In a Colorado fire 2.3 million acres had been burned (BBC 3). That land could have been saved if the use of prescribed burns had been in the area.
Allergens in the air also affect pollution, as carbon dioxide levels cause plants to produce more pollen (Climate Change, 2007). Smoke pollution from wildfires worsens the air quality and is harmful to breathe in. Wildfire smoke contains ozone-forming pollutants, particulates, and air toxics (California’s drought, 2015). The drought increases dry, hot, and windy weather, which intensifies the severity of wildfires. According to the CDC, the drought also increases the risk of catching fungal infections, or valley fever (Live Science Staff, 2012).
When humans discovered fire, it was misused by being used as a weapon of war and hunting against both humans and animals which led to massive destruction left by occurrences such as forest fires. When humans developed a successful method of transportation it has led to environmental set backs. For example, when horses were the primary mode of transportation, manure was left everywhere in the streets of cities which understandably, led to the cultivation of numerous diseases. When gasoline cars took a rise due to their convenience, the Earth took a horrible environmental toll and the quality of life degraded to the rising levels of greenhouse gases. It seems that with every technological advancement introduced, there are always potential set
The worst of which is the loss of habitat for millions of species. British Columbia is the home of 1,900 species that are at risk due to the loss of their habitat. “A staggering 87 per cent these don't receive any protection under provincial or federal laws” (Eco-Justice). One thing is certain if we let deforestation continue countless species will be lost forever. Not only does deforestation cause animal to become threatened from the loss of their habitat, but it also causes plants and soil to die. In forests the trees are canopies to protect plants and soil, without the canopy’s plants will start to die and soil will start drying out too quickly. Trees are also a necessary anchor for soil, the roots of the trees keep the soil in place. Without the roots to keep soil in place it can be washed away and this can create vegetation problems. With the soil eroding that can cause silt to enter the lakes, rivers and streams and pollute the water which can lead to poor health for the population. The trees in the forest also absorb rainfall and produce water vapor that is released into the atmosphere. This makes them an important part of the water cycle that without the trees would be disturbed. Deforestation is also a major cause of climate change. “Conversion of forests to non-forest land use rapidly releases stored carbon as carbon dioxide impacting the atmosphere and climate for centuries” (Parfitt,11). Trees absorb many greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. With fewer trees absorbing greenhouse gases more will enter the atmosphere and speed up global warming. The trees absorb a large amount of carbon as well. When all of that carbon that the trees have stored is released into the environment it can change the climate. In B.C climate change has caused the sea level to rise and it cause glaciers to melt. Scientist have figured out that by 2100 B.C will lose 70% of its
Human beings cause most wildfires, directly or indirectly. In the United States lightning, the only truly natural cause is responsible for less than 10% of all such fires. In the West, lightning is the primary cause, with smoking (cigarettes, matches, and such) the second most frequent. Combined they account for 50 to 75% of all wildfires. In the “13 southern states (Virginia to Texas) the primary cause is arson; this combined with smoking and debris burning makes up 75% of all wildfires” (Perry, 1994). The other causes of wildfires are machine use and campfires. Machine use includes railroads, logging, sawmills, and other operations using equip...
..., power plants, roads, public transportation. This is demonstrated when all the trees were clear-cut a urban sprawl took place which is when a city expands so fast that it expands into the countryside. The built a lot of infrastructure to support the fast changing they weren't build “up to code”. This damages the land and makes it so the previous ecosystem can’t try to fix itself.
Fire at any level can be devastating, yet the effects that wildfires have on every worldwide country really has left its mark on the land. As written by world renowned wild fire spokesperson Smokey the Bear, “Every year, wildfires sweeps through parts of the United States setting wilderness and homes ablaze. On average these raging infernos destroy about four to five million acres of land a year. But in 2012, wildfire burned more than 9.3 million acres, an area about the size of Massachusetts and Connecticut combined” (U.S. Wildfires). Destroying homes, crops, towns and of course forests. Yet the effects of these fires can be seen from a negative perspective as well as some positive. Plus there are natural causes as well as manmade that makes these destructive fires erupt and become almost unstoppable in seconds.
that can endanger the health of human beings, plants, and animals, or that can damage
Obliterating everything in its path, a bushfire is a natural hazard, which can be defined as wild fires in scrublands and or bushlands, especially one that spreads rapidly and is hard to contain. They can be catastrophic, causing severe damage to properties, the environment and even deaths. And as a result there is an ever-increasing need to prepare for the potential impacts of bushfires.
The Forest fire is occurring very frequently nowadays, reasons for it are a heavy increase in global warming and an increase in temperature.