Threats
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Given the wrecking ball the Trump administration is taking to our public lands and public values, it might seem trivial to worry about tribal co-management. Our public lands are among the most democratic of American institutions. Every American has a right to voice their opinion about public lands management, but no group should be elevated…
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Here we go again. Yet another article “Bill plans to use livestock grazing to lower wildfire risk” about how livestock grazing can reduce wildfires. It seems that every month or so, someone (without much knowledge of fire ecology or even grazing impacts) rediscovers the fairy tale that fuel reduction by grazing will preclude large wildfires.…
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I published Energy: Overdevelopment and The Delusion of Endless Growth a few years ago. In my research for that book, I gained a couple of insights about energy and its ultimate costs. First, oil and gas are sold on the global market, ultimately setting the price of oil and gas at the pump. Second, energy companies…
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Congress is considering Fix Our Forests legislation. The legislation is a Trojan Horse that seeks to increase fuel reductions on public lands through logging and prescribed burns. However, large wildfires are ultimately not controlled by fuels. Fires need fuel to ignite, but they only spread when the climate/weather is conducive to ignition and the spread…
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One of the first Executive Orders from the Trump Whitehouse is to reverse environmental protections for federal lands in Alaska and hasten, expand, and encourage resource development. Sec. 2. Policy. It is the policy of the United States to: (a) fully avail itself of Alaska’s vast lands and resources for the benefit of the Nation…
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The fires in Los Angeles are still burning as I write this. The loss of property, the disruption and loss of lives, and the trauma these fires created are horrendous. Nevertheless, there are lessons we can learn to change fire policies to mitigate (not prevent) such tragedies in the future. Wildfires are a natural part…
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A recent commentary in the Addison Independent supported logging a portion of the Worcester Range in Vermont, arguing that it would “improve” the forest“health” and “resilience.” As a former Vermont resident and an ecologist, I suggest the commentary’s signatories are promoting an anthropocentric, not a biocentric perspective. Ironically, the title of their commentary is “Science-based”…
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I recently received a comment on my The Wildlife News article, Audubon Society Embraces Ranching. The commentator suggested if we don’t accept ranching, we will have subdivisions everywhere. I’ve written a lot about this. It is one of the oldest arguments from livestock proponents and most mainstream conservation groups like The Nature Conservancy and others…
