[libstripper]

Over the next two decades, the beetle-killed trees will shed their needles and their branches, then fall down and contribute to a tremendous load of fuel on the forest floor, Wettstein said. At that point, he said, it’s a waiting game as to when the combination of fuel, weather and a spark culminates in a large-scale fire.

“It’s not if, but when,” Wettstein said.

For anyone who's seen what these beetles do to a pine forest, as I have here in east Tennessee, this is the absolute truth. The main difference between here and the far west is we have a lot more rain and, hence, a far lower risk of massive forest fires. My only disagreement is that, from what I've personally seen, the dead trees usually fall in about a year or less, not over two decades.

[Tijeras_Slim]

In the very dry west (Central NM for me) it does take a good long time for trees to fall once dead. There's little mositure in the soil to promote rot or harbor critters that destroy the root system. We've had tons of trees killed by beetles, partiuclarly in the north of the state (up to 80% of pinion pines in some areas) over the last 5-6 years, and they're still standing on the hillsides, grey and dead.

[george76]

Out west the dead trees can stand for decades.

Even then, after some fall to the ground, they often do not rot very fast...decades.

Some blow downs can pile up very high ( dozens of feet ) and do burn so hot that the organic soil is later killed.

First air pollution, then water pollution ( tasts and looks terrible even if treated chemically for bacteria ), wildlife is killed ( fish can not breath the ash water either )...