George Wuerthner: Are beetles and wildfire fears misplaced?

Monday, 11 January 2010 13:23

The current pine beetle “outbreak” that has led to higher tree mortality among Colorado forests has prompted some people to suggest that beetle-kill trees will invariably lead to larger wildfires and “destroy” our forests. At the heart of this issue are flawed assumptions about wildfires, what constitutes a healthy forest, and the options available to humans in face of natural processes that are inconvenient and get in the way of our designs.