The Post & Email by Thomas Reiner, Quartz Mountain Commentary
The American West is no longer endless spans of unused prairies and forests. It has grown to become home to millions of Americans where prairies have been tilled into farmlands, and forests have been largely cut down to provide wood to build those homes. The remaining forests have taken notice and look to Nature for a response. Think of the Ents in “The Lord of the Rings” who slowly realized the extent of their destruction and took revenge.
Nature is coming. Some Western states react like ostriches sticking their heads in the ground while other states roll up their sleeves and work to protect both humans and trees. The largest ostrich is California where Enlightened EnvironmentalistsTM scream to save snails or something. Their mantra is to save the trees by doing absolutely nothing, never realizing that Nature is always doing something. Forests, old and new, always grow, and nature understands that the health of the forest demands that the detritus be occasionally removed by fire. California ignores this law of nature, causing larger forest fires growing in frequency, size and destruction. In 2008, the Humboldt Fire destroyed most of the town of Paradise and 32 people died, some burnt alive in their cars attempting to escape. The voters in California failed to learn the lesson that forest management protects both people and trees. In 2018, the Camp Fire became California’s worst forest fire. According to the Wiki article, “The Camp Fire caused 85 fatalities, displaced more than 50,000 people, and destroyed more than 18,000 structures, causing an estimated US$16.5 billion in damage.” This was mostly preventable but blocked by politicians.
Across the Colorado River from California lies Arizona, which values its citizens as well as its environment. There is a mistaken notion that Arizona consists of nothing but cactus and rattlesnakes. However, Arizona contains huge forests, home to humans and hundreds of wild animal species including bear, deer, mountain lions, javelinas, eagles and turkeys. Humans in Arizona are not turkeys like their California counterparts.
More:
https://www.thepostemail.com/2025/06/17/wise-fires-prevent-wild-fires/
