Wildfire

We all have those times of the year that we really enjoy. For myself I love the late fall when the rain machine here in southwestern Oregon (usually) turns on (if we’re lucky) and we get enough water falling from the sky to keep us green and growing for another year.

My downside begins in summer when the rains and humidity disappear and the temperatures soar. Sure, it’s great for the garden, but not so great for the wildfire risk.

The talking heads on the news (both local and national, and irrespective of party lines) love to assign blame to just about everything, and now (along with all the political BS we are suffering through) they have the yearly fire risk to find a culprit for.

Climate Change is becoming everyone’s favorite villain for just about everything they don’t like, and I would never argue that this is not a growing and continuing issue that will only get worse as we continue to play ostrich with our heads in the sand.

The changing climate certainly contributes to the earth’s recent weather excesses, including the massive flooding and heat domes in the United States, the incredible flooding in Australia last month along with the heat in Europe, and countless other climatic irregularities that are increasingly disrupting what we have come to expect, even demand.

And the wildfires! Is climate change responsible? Surely it plays a part — to what degree remains a subject of passionate debate — but the climate is always changing. I promise another blog post specifically on this subject, but to get us past this one, it should suffice to consider the differences between 20,000 years ago at the peak of the last ice age, and what we have now.

In any event, I submit that there are other factors contributing to the increase in devastating wildfires that have been scorching the western United States. A few of the top contenders (at least in my mind) include:

Smokey Bear: The United States Forest Service — with the best of intentions — has probably done more to increase wildfire risk and severity than any of the other contributing factors. In a natural environment, regular burns are good for the forest. They clear out fallen branches and duff, along with the ground-level brush currently choking nearly all of the forests of the Pacific Northwest. When I first started working in the forest in the mid-1970s I had the opportunity to spend time with old geezers (like I am now) who remembered the years before Smokey arrived; times when wildfires were allowed and would clear the debris, the forest was free of brush and duff, and they could lead pack mules right through the trees. Try doing this now!

But with that being said, we ALL still beg for the guys in the yellow suits to show up with a shovel or McLeod or Pulaski, sweat buckets while working their magic, and save our house when the fire is heading our way! Hypocritical? Possibly, but it’s like so many of the complex issues of today: what is right and proper and moral sounds great, right up until we miss a meal (or gas hits $5.00 a gallon).

Population pressures: There are SO many more people living in the forest these days. I remember when it was much different, but what are you going to do? The population continues to increase, and the people have to live somewhere. And that will usually be — when given a choice — where there is sufficient water to support them. Areas that will also have enough moisture to support trees, and especially brush…

Sadly, not everyone who lives in the woods has any idea what it takes to be a responsible fire-wise citizen. This is not meant as a slam, but the instinctual understanding of the myriad issues isn’t naturally occurring within all of us, and there are far too many who move into wildfire-prone areas who have no idea that it’s even necessary to attempt to mitigate the risk, much less how to accomplish such an elusive goal.

Money, morality, and liability: Fighting fires is expensive, and becoming ever more so as the years pass and our collective morality, environmental considerations, and fear of legal liability compound the complications. Think of the literal army of workers mobilized to fight even a modest sized blaze, and then ask yourself how many of them are actually on the fire line, and how many — in these days of modern times — provide the necessary support in all of its forms.

And the money issue isn’t just related to fighting the fires. Susie and I just got our fire insurance renewal, and — based upon the increased fire risk — our premium literally doubled in cost over last year. This is a body-blow for a couple of ex-hippies on a fixed income, but there is absolutely nothing we can do other than suck it up and write the check. At least they didn’t cancel us completely…

So what to do? Well, if I could answer that I’d be rich and famous and living on surf and turf (instead of still pounding down ramen and bean burritos). But while I cannot come up with a silver bullet to fix this problem, I can offer the following:

Like everything else, understanding and respect begin with education. Until more of us understand the risk and are willing to do our part to become better stewards of the earth, we will continue to be plagued by wildfire (as well as the myriad other issues threatening us).

But with that being said — and assuming we don’t suddenly get a bunch smarter and clean up our mess — sooner or later the fire will come that we cannot put out, or humans won’t be around to put out. Sooner or later it’s all gonna burn.

But there is a glimmer of hope (at least for those of us who genuinely love the earth, and accept that what is living here now is just what is here now): no matter how bad the biosphere is mistreated and potentially fatally disrupted, in a veritable blink of Earthtime it’ll be healthy and overflowing again. Sure, it may look different (when’s the last time you saw a T-Rex?), but different doesn’t equal bad.

I find this VERY comforting…