Transcript:
With the warmer climate, wildfires are intensifying, potentially burning huge areas of large healthy trees.
Sleep: “In the past, we might have thought of something that was sick or under drought conditions or more likely to burn. But now we find everything willing to burn.”
But sleep from Darren’s Sustainable Forestry Initiative (or SFI) says forest landowners can take steps to reduce the risk of the environment and its livelihoods.
His group sets standards for sustainable forestry. It can prove that wood and paper products come from forests that meet their guidelines – protect wildlife, plant trees, etc.
In recent standards, SFI has added guidance on wildfires. They require landowners in areas that are prone to occur to take measures to reduce their vulnerability – for example, by performing controlled combustion to reduce flammable materials and improve forest health.
These measures cost money. But sleep says the price of fire may be much higher for landowners who rely on wood harvest income.
Sleep: “Yes, it’s an extra cost, but it’s a cost you can’t afford”…
…especially when the climate warms up and increases the risk of extreme fires.
Report Credit: Sarah Kennedy/Chavobart Digital Media
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