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Article: Forging a science-based national forest fire policy: a comprehensive policy should consider all aspects of wildfire management, not just fuels and fire suppression.
- Article from:
- Issues in Science and Technology
- Article date:
- September 22, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 National Academy of Sciences. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Large, intense forest fires, along with their causes and their consequences, have become important political and social issues. In the United States, however, there is no comprehensive policy to deal with fire and fuels and few indications that such a policy is in development.
Fire is, of course, a natural element of many wildlands. Forests are accumulations of combustible organic matter that can be set ablaze by lightning, a lit cigarette or match, or even sunlight focused through a lens. First to ignite are fine fuels such as pine needles, leaves, and twigs, but as heat accumulates, the bigger fuels such as shrubs and trees start to burn. If fuels are sufficient ...