Katie Sauerbrey, TNC’s Oregon Fire Program Manager (Photo: The Nature Conservancy)
By Kevin Policarpo, RBTUS
The Western United States have been working to lessen the destructive potential of future fires to save more infrastructure and lives. New methods, equipment, and vehicles are being developed for use by firefighters to better contain fires.
One method that has received more attention in recent years is controlled burns. Controlled burns have been used for years to lessen the amount of plant life in forests, which reduces the amount of vegetation that can be turned into fuel for future wildfires. However, controlled burns have come under criticism as the changing weather can easily make a prescribed fire burn out of control and turn into a wildfire. Despite the risks, organizations such as The Nature Conservancy (TNC) are working with communities and organizations around the world to prove the effectiveness of prescribed fires for forest management to lessen the power of future fires.
In July of 2021, the Bootleg Fire reached the Sycan Marsh Preserve in Oregon. As The Nature Conservancy’s (TNC) fire teams based in Oregon fought the fire, they witnessed a change in its behavior. The fire dropped down from its height of 200 feet to 4 feet, which allowed them to save several buildings in the preserve.
The fire teams, which included Katie Sauerbrey, TNC’s Oregon Fire Program Manager witnessed the effects of tree thinning in weakening wildfires. Fires such as the Bootleg Fire have thrived from droughts and extreme heat caused by climate change in addition to outdated management policies that require every fire to be extinguished “… no matter how small, also contribute to the problem by allowing dead vegetation to accumulate and add fuel to fires.”[1]
TNC has been using Sycan Marsh as a massive laboratory to perform experiments with forest treatments for two decades. Their goal is to use thinning and prescribed burns to restore the forest to its original state. In tests involving tree thinning, the researchers leave behind clusters of various trees, studying them to see how the various tree species can encourage healthier growth for the vegetation. Through multiple tests over the years, TNC researchers discovered that areas that underwent tree thinning first and then prescribed burns would be the most resilient to future wildfires. While supporters of tree thinning and prescribed burns acknowledge that the treatments “… won’t necessarily slow every fire, especially as fires grow larger and more ferocious in a warming world. But they say the evidence shows treatments are effective.”[2]
Tree thinning involves the use of hand-held tools and heavy machinery to cut down trees, removing overcrowded vegetation and creating space between groups of trees that were untouched. Mechanical thinning is one of the U.S. Forest Service’s best tools to reduce the possibility of wildfires in America’s forests. This method is used “… to restore more natural forest structure with a focus on tree density, tree species distribution, tree age distribution and natural gaps in the canopy. Additionally, reduction of the number of trees reduces stress and competition in forested areas susceptible to insect and disease.”[3]
Photo: Rodnae Productions
The Science.org article “To save forests, cut some trees down, scientists say”, states that performing tree thinning early in the forest’s growth period can create trees that are more resilient to climate change. In addition, “… these thinned forests can suck carbon out of the air just as fast as dense forests.”[4] By thinning the trees early, the remaining trees can grow rapidly before they fight over water and light.
Overcrowding of vegetation stresses the health of trees, “… often causing natural fire-dependent species, like ponderosa pine, to vanish, and allowing highly flammable fuels, like the non-native cheatgrass, to build up and become fodder for massive forest fires.”[5] Mechanical thinning is a multi-step process that “… involves piling brush, pruning branches, and creating fuel breaks”.[6] Some of the tools that the Forest Service use to thin trees include chainsaws, rakes, hand tools, and heavy machines such as bulldozers and wood-chippers.
There are some downsides to using tree thinning. The Forest Service considers the effects of tree thinning on soil, water, or sensitive habitats and works to mitigate the potential harm thinning could cause to the local ecosystem. Another issue is that thinning has been criticized as a method for timber companies “… to harvest the biggest, most valuable trees in a forest with little regard for the ecological consequences.”[7]
In an interview with Nature.org, Katie Sauerbrey discussed her work in The Nature Conservancy. As a burn boss, she plans and implements prescribed fires, invasive species management, and projects that benefit local wildlife. She also works with government agencies, researchers, and indigenous peoples to achieve a better future for all. She leads a team of fire practitioners that “… that conduct safe and strategic controlled burns to improve the health of the ecosystem of Oregon’s dry forests and reduce the risk of intense and destructive summer wildfires.”[8] Sauerbrey states that she got her job as she wanted to work outside and when she showed up to her workplace, she discovered that she would work in a fire crew. She got hooked to her job after fighting wildfires and doing prescribed burns. She also enjoyed the relationships she made with her team and traveling around the Western United States.
Sauerbrey also discussed the difference between performing prescribed fires and fighting wildfires. With controlled burns, firefighters can learn about the behaviors and effects of fires. This knowledge of fire “… carries over really well when firefighting, and helps the firefighter choose the best tactics, and use them well.”[9] Sauerbrey is a strong advocate for diversity in fire management. Her work allowed her to learn that there are multiple ways to think about fire and various perspectives on how to use fire in natural systems. An example of these perspectives that she learned from was the way that Indigenous Peoples in Oregon use fire “… to keep the landscape healthy, resilient and abundant.”[10] Saurebrey notes that the fire culture of the U.S. is evolving and that it is absolutely essential that it continue to do so for the sake of nature and people’s livelihood.
Matthew Miller, one of Ms. Sauerbrey’s colleagues, posted a blog where he discusses the effect of wildfires on the Conservancy’s preserves. The majority of the Conservancy’s preserves in North America have been shaped by local indigenous peoples using their unique burning practices to improve the health of the preserves. Miller notes that the Conservancy’s experience with fire “… provides opportunities to work with Indigenous peoples who continue to use fire in traditional ways and whose cultures depend on fire to persist.”[11]
In the Nature.org article titled “Why We Work With Fire”, TNC covers the importance of prescribed fires along with their collaborative efforts with communities and organizations around the world. The article shows an example of how fire affects a fire-suppressed forest compared to a fire-maintained forest. In the fire-suppressed forest, stopping every fire that sprung up there caused the forest to become overcrowded with vegetation, weakening the forest’s health and resiliency. The end result is that the forest is completely burned away, with the trees dying due to their crowns catching fire. In comparison, the understory of the fire-maintained forest was the only part that was burned away. Due to the gaps created using prescribed fires (with or without the use of thinning), the larger trees are relatively unscathed as their crowns were not touched by the flames.
TNC is working with “… government agencies, Indigenous peoples and others to bring the role of fire in nature back into balance and help communities prepare for, manage and live safely with fire.”[12] The Conservancy has sent teams to work with reserves and parks outside of the United States. One example is in Zambia where TNC have trained the staff of Kafue National Park in the use of prescribed fire since 2011. Their work helps to prevent the damage caused by late-season wildfires in the area. Another example is the Deep River Forest Reserve in Belize, where TNC has partnered with government officials and Mayan communities to protect the country’s fire-adapted pine savannas. One more example of TNC’s international efforts is in Northern Australia, where they help to establish a “… resilient and inclusive conservation economy that supports long-term sustainable land management and the wellbeing of people who depend on their land.” They work with Aboriginal Australians who combine their ancient knowledge and practices of prescribed burns with modern contemporary fire and climate change data to create fire programs across Australia.
There are downsides to using prescribed burns. Weather can cause the fires to grow out of control and become a wildfire. One such example was the Calf Canyon Fire in New Mexico. On April 6th, 2022, a prescribed burn holdover pile that was leftover from a prescribed fire ignited due to spot fires caused by erratic winds. The fire was a holdover fire, which is a fire that remains dormant for a considerable amount of time.
CONCLUSION
Controlled burns are becoming more commonplace for forest management. Organizations such as the Nature Conservancy and U.S. Forest Service has embraced the method and used it to remove vegetation that could be turned into fuel for wildfires.
Fire managers such as Sauerbrey deploy controlled burns as a tool in the firefighter’s arsenal to lessen the speed and growth of wildfires. Combined with tree thinning, prescribed fires can help strengthen trees against climate change. The method is not perfect as factors such as weather can cause it to turn into a wildfire that the firefighters on station will have to put out. In the end, despite their drawbacks, prescribed fires have proven to be vital for forest management. As the world becomes warmer due to the changing climate, prescribed fires will be among the best options to lessen the damage future wildfires and help humanity adapt to their situation.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Fountain, Henry, This Vast Wildfire Lab Is Helping Foresters Prepare for a Hotter Planet, Published 5 January 2022, nytimes.com, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/05/climate/fire-forest-management-bootleg-oregon.html
[2] Ibid.
[3] Westover, Robert Hudson, Thinning the Forest for the Trees, Published 19 August 2021, fs.usda.gov, https://www.fs.usda.gov/features/thinning-forest-trees
[4] Chrobak, Ula, To save forests, cut some trees down, scientists say, Published 21 April 2017, science.org, https://www.science.org/content/article/save-forests-cut-some-trees-down-scientists-say
[5] https://www.fs.usda.gov/features/thinning-forest-trees
[6] Ibid.
[7] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/05/climate/fire-forest-management-bootleg-oregon.html
[8] The Nature Conservancy, Life On The Fireline Burn Boss Katie Sauerbrey talks about her passions for prescribed fire and the importance of diverse perspectives in fire management., Published 3 March 2021, nature.org, https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/united-states/oregon/stories-in-oregon/katie-sauerbrey-prescribed-fire-burn-boss/
[9] Ibid.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Miller, Matthew, When Wildfire Comes to Nature Conservancy Preserves, Published 29 November 2022, blog.nature.org, https://blog.nature.org/science/2021/11/29/when-wildfire-comes-to-nature-conservancy-preserves/
[12] The Nature Conservancy, Why We Work With Fire, Published 26 June 2019, nature.org, https://www.nature.org/en-us/what-we-do/our-priorities/protect-water-and-land/land-and-water-stories/why-we-work-with-fire/