Yosemite Rim Fire
During the time of this first post, the most relevant environmental happening is the fire burning through Yosemite. This will be a story I will get to witness up close and personally during my planned trip to Yosemite National Park September 21st through the 29th.The fire started from a hunter who started an illegal fire which got out of control. Currently, it is 84% contained and although that percentage may sound alright to a college student, the fire will still burn and smolder through the park causing more smoke and more acreage lost. The biggest hazards that exist in the park are smoke weakened trees, and burning stump holes. Park officials ask that if having to drive through, one should not leave the roadway or enter the burned area on foot.
 |
| This picture taken Thursday, August 5th show half dome in Yosemite, clouded by smoke. Image courtesy USGS |
Being that this is an environmental hazard blog, it is important to discuss how this may affect us. With the current level of containment, tourists may be inconvenienced by road closures and smoke. The risks are dealt with by park officials and the firefighters who have to suppress the flames. That is the quick and dirty of the situation, but the long standing human/environment relationship we have with wildfires goes back far back into history and that is subject of analysis in this blog.
The popular opinion will leave a negative connotation with fire. And why not? Fires are all consuming and have immense power to destroy. What popular opinion fails to recognize, is that throughout earths history wildfires have occurred with frequency and have been crucial to the succession of forest ecosystems. Fire was essential and welcomed by forest ecosystems to remove dead materials, fertilize the soils, and allow room for new plants to flourish. Many plants have a direct need for fire. For example: the jack pine and the sequoia tree have serotinous (late blooming) cones which covered in a thick resin. When a fire comes through, the resin is softened and the cone is allowed to open an release the seeds. More reasons can be found at the link below.
http://creationrevolution.com/2012/06/plants-that-need-fire-to-survive/
Where the natural frequencies of fires have stopped is where humans started finding reasons to suppress fires. In Yosemite, we felt the need for more vacation huts and tourist shops, thus the need to protect its value. Enter the age of fire suppression. Unfortunately when dead and dry materials don't get burned off, they will continue to accumulate. Eventually we get a vast supply of fuels that is ready to go at the spark of a match.
What to take away from this, is that our human need to succeed and grow and control has big implications. Thanks to the growth in power of the scientific community, we are beginning to convey the importance of studying human-environment relationships.
