2019 Cal Fire and
2018 LAO reports
identify that
California’s government
and regulatory agencies
are responsible
for the present
terrible condition
of California’s forests
along with the resulting
increased wildfire risks
and occurrences.
The excuse that
“climate change”
has caused
these problems
is propaganda
to conceal that
the state government
is really responsible.
California governments
are responsible for
significantly increased
wildfire risks
and outcomes
as a consequence of
decades long poor
forest management
decisions, practices
and priorities by
responsible government,
regulatory and political
leaders.
These extensive failures
were documented in two
comprehensive reports.
one by CalFire
in February 2019
in February 2019
and another by
the California Legislative
Analyst Office (LAO)
issued in April 2018.
From the
April 2018
LAO Report
( please note those red numbers ! )
“The draft Forest Carbon Plan states that 20 million acres of forestland in California face high wildfire threat and may benefit from fuels reduction treatment.
According to the plan, Cal Fire estimates that to address identified forest health and resiliency needs on nonfederal lands, the rate of treatment would need to be increased from the recent average of 17,500 acres per year to approximately 500,000 acres per year.
The plan does not include associated cost estimates.”
“Forest management” is generally defined as the process of planning and implementing practices for the stewardship and use of forests to meet specific environmental, economic, social, and cultural objectives.
Activities forest managers employ include timber harvesting (typically for commercial purposes), vegetation thinning (clearing out small trees and brush, often through mechanical means or prescribed burns), and reforestation (planting new trees).
Figure 5 describes specific activities that managers typically undertake to improve the health of forests.
As discussed later, research has shown that these are the types of activities that are most effective at preserving and restoring the natural functions and processes of forests, and thereby maximizing the natural benefits that they can provide.
Efforts to extinguish active wildfires are not generally considered to be forest management activities, as they are more responsive than proactive.”
“As noted above, forest management practices and policies over the past several decades have
(1) imposed limitations on timber harvesting,
(2) emphasized fire suppression, and
(3) instituted a number of environmental permitting requirements.
These practices and policies have combined to constrain the amount of trees and other growth removed from the forest.
This has significantly increased the density of trees in forests across the state, and particularly the prevalence of smaller trees and brush.
Overall tree density in the state’s forested regions increased by 30 percent between the 1930s and the 2000s."
FIVE CHARTS BELOW:
The first three charts
are from the
2018 LAO Report
The last two tables,
are from the 2019
CalFire Report
FIVE CHARTS BELOW:
The first three charts
are from the
2018 LAO Report
The last two tables,
are from the 2019
CalFire Report
