FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:Leland
G.“Lee” Heinrich
September 28, 2006
208-382-3244
or 208-630-4701
lheinrich@senate.idaho.gov
Cascade Idaho, September 28, 2006 -
This year's fierce wildfires will lead to even fiercer
political battles over who is responsible for the fires,
and rightfully so. Is it the hazardous fuel? Is it the
drought? Is it a National policy that does not support
quick response? Or is it the National Wild Fire Use Policy?
Or is it the obstructionists who file lawsuits just to
delay and/or stop timber sales and other projects that
could reduce fuels?
The answer turns out to be "all of the above;” It is not our local
Forest Service and it certainly isn’t the brave men and women who stand
on the fire line. The hazardous fuel crisis is not a myth; drought and fuel,
is the chief culprit behind big fires in Idaho and elsewhere in the West. As
of September 18 2006, nearly 850,000 acres have burned in Idaho this fire season,
contributing on a national level, to this year's record setting wildfires of
nearly 9 million acres.
Fire is a natural and vital component of most western
forest ecosystems. In the dry forest types, such as ponderosa
pine, fire was historically present as a frequent, low-intensity
disturbance. Fire is necessary for the health of the forests,
and the forests have evolved to depend on fires to clean
out underbrush and maintain biological diversity. Dead
trees serve as important wildlife habitat and contribute
to the nutrient cycle, and patches of dead trees allow
for forest succession. Even stand-replacing fires have
historically occurred at some level in almost every forest
type in the West. Unfortunately, the fires of this year
and the past several years have been burning large areas
with relatively high severity, as well as burning into
communities. In this instance, quick response would help
minimize the negative ecological and economic effects of
wildland fires
Wildland fires become a problem when they burn hotter
than normally occurring wildland fires and/or on areas
larger than normal. These hotter and bigger fires are now
more prevalent following a century of human activities
that have changed the ecological character of forest ecosystems
around the country. These large-scale, high-intensity fires
can have negative effects on forest ecosystems and local
communities.
The State of Idaho is committed to helping communities deal with catastrophic
wildland fires through education programs and funding that supports forest
health restoration and post fire recovery for communities.
Wildland fires, while essential to the health of our forests, can cause several
problems for nearby communities, including: soil erosion, landslides, water
pollution, decreased (and sometimes dangerous) air quality, threats to human
safety and structures, and loss of resources or access to resources, such as
timber for logging and trails and waterways for recreation. In turn, these
problems can have drastic effects on local economies, including significant
impacts to natural resources. These problems have been magnified by more than
a century of fire suppression and by past management practices and the current
drought.
The number of firefighters killed each year more than
doubled from about 8 per year in the 1950s to nearly 17
per year in the 1990s. Where fatalities increased was in
aircraft and vehicle accidents growing from 1 to 6 per
year and heart attacks growing from one-half to 5 per year.
An aging workforce and greater use of aircraft and vehicles,
and the lack of clean air, are responsible for increased
firefighter deaths.
Ecological problems continue once fires have stopped
burning. Soil that was held in place by trees and other
vegetation is likely to wash away into waterways during
rainstorms or with next year’s runoff. This surge
of soil and ash into waterways can harm fish and other
aquatic species of plants and animals as well as drinking
water supplies.
Scientists are also studying the link between forest
fires and mercury in fish as part of a U.S. Forest Service
fisheries research team tasks. The mercury locked up in
the forest can build up for years in trees and plants and
then suddenly be flushed into nearby waterways when it's
released by forest fires that turn the vegetation to ash.
Scientists with the Forest Service and other agencies are trying now to determine
how much mercury is released by those fires. They're also finding interesting
relationships between mercury on the land and mercury in the fish.
While the data is preliminary, scientists already
have made some observations from their two summers in the
field. As expected, they found that mercury in fish is
related to mercury levels in nearby soils. They also found
that the more organic matter is in the soil, the more mercury
it holds. Scientists also have used soil samples to prove
that the mercury in the forest is coming from the sky,
not from the bedrock below.
Past experience has shown us that a quick response can help minimize the negative
ecological and economic effects of wildland fires, including loss of jobs,
soil erosion and water pollution. Techniques such as soil stabilization and
replanting can dramatically reduce soil erosion and water pollution, and
also can provide jobs lost during the fires.
Instead of bickering over blame, we in District 8 should
work together to end threats of lawsuits and disincentives.
Only then will federally administered lands be truly managed
for the people and by the local people.
Leland G. “Lee” Heinrich, Republican Candidate
Idaho State Senate, Legislative District 8 |
