Posted on 03/31/2025 3:17:56 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Following the devasting Los Angeles wildfires there was a lot of talk about better forest management and better fire mitigation.
“I think a lot of these forests have not been touched in so long that they have become an issue and a problem,” said Randy Will a heavy machine operator for Bleck Fire Prevention.
Will is part of a three-man crew now clearing large areas of thick and dangerous fire fuels and turning downed trees into piles of mulch at Jack’s Peak Park in Monterey.
This is a shaded fuel break and so that if there is a fire up in this region, it gives a chance for it to slow down and it gives a chance for the firefighters to lay in ground lines or bring in personnel,” Will said.
The project is already several weeks in the work at the heavily forested area.
“If a fire's blazing through this forest, it hits this shaded fuel break I mean, it's not going to stop, but it's going to slow it down enough that fire crews can respond,” said Bryan Flores, chief of Monterey county parks.
Some trails are also being cleared up and widened to allow firefighters access to their heavy equipment. When the project is completed firefighters will have dual access from Olmstead Road on the north and Carmel Valley in the south.
“And a lot of these subdivisions that are on these hillsides are one way and one way out type of thing so anything we can do to reduce the fire hazard, to give people the chance to escape if there is a fire, is great,” said Flores.
The work is being done as fires are becoming more destructive and there's more talk of better forest management and fire mitigation but little is being done.
The work at Jack's Peak is helping to reduce the fire risk while improving the health of the forest.
“The mindset is leave it a healthier forest I understand the fact that this looks drastic, but if you came back in one season this will be greened out and it will be a healthier forest,” said Will.
The project is a joint effort involving Calfire, Cypress Fire and Monterey County Parks and should take several more weeks to complete.
Ping
Much like Bill Clinton pretended he was all for limiting welfare to X months all along ... only after the Contract with America Republicans held him to it.
Burning mulch makes a great ember storm until it rots down.
Never been there. I’ll have to try it out sometime. Thanks.
It’s amazing that it has taken years of destructive fires mainly caused by extreme environmental wackos to finally get some forest management underway.
I was looking at the NPS page for Yosemite today. They are burning slash piles in the park now and there’s a warning for possible poor air quality.
There’s always efforts in North Idaho to maintain healthy forests. Hiking in the woods, it’s common to find many large slash piles all over the place. They typically get burned this time of year. You’ll see smoke rising from the forest in many places.
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