This season brought fires that burned hotter, moved faster, and claimed more lives and property than in past decades.
The
DEMOCRAT governor and the partisan news media were quick to cite "climate change" as the culprit.
Outgoing Gov. "Moonbeam" Brown (D) claimed that the Beholden State will have to spend “probably hundreds of billions” to combat “global warming".
Echoing Brown, Scott McClean of the California Department of Forest and Fire Protection (CAL Fire) claimed that “the problem is changing climate.”
Apparently, then, the solution is to pour “hundreds of billions” of dollars into government. What specifically this money would fund is not clear, nor are the measures that could be taken to “fight” a changing climate.
From the Ventana Wilderness in Big Sur to Warner Valley on Mt. Lassen, trails are allowed to become overgrown, bordered by dead trunks and dry limbs. When trees fall, instead of the dead wood being cleared, it’s left along paths and roadways. Underbrush is left untouched as well, with forest floors blanketed in dry kindling. This hands-off approach creates a literal tinderbox, leaving forests incredibly vulnerable.
One practical solution, which would likely cost less than $100 billion, would be to clear the deadwood and dry brush annually. Additionally, firebreaks could be made along roads and highways, limiting fire’s ability to spread. If these solutions sound simple, that’s because they are.
CAL Fire is ill prepared to manage forests, despite its $443 million budget. Rather than throw more money at a system that has failed, a commonsense solution is in order.
https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/416956-california-failed-to-sufficiently-manage-its-forests
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