On 6/7/13 8:28 AM, <<"tei''>>> wrote:
This is one of these "Save the forest by burning it" situations that don't have any logic.
To save a forest firefighters often cut a few tree. Don't cut all the trees in a forest to save it from a fire.
Seasonal work, many solar obits past. Well, actually, standard practice is to scratch a line and burn out from the line to reduce fuel proximal to the line. "Scrach" can take the form of a crew with hand tools scratching a width-of-tool reduction in fine fuel to tandem tractors scratching width-of-blade, followed by walked drip torches. Trees don't really "burn" and cutting trees to make line is only useful when attempting to limit crown fires more effectively dealt with by retreat to a discontiguous canopy and firing out to reduce propagation over fine fuels. Modernly, fire is recognized as a natural phenomena and past fire suppression doctrine has elevated fuel load and fire intensity, with deleterious effect, and suppression goals modified to structure defense, and identified resource defense, as well as the ongoing timber sales value defense. -e