There is continued concern about wildfires in the United States (U.S.). This year in the Western U.S., particularly in California, Oregon, and Washington, forest, chaparral, and grassland landscapes have burned. Some ecosystems burn almost completely while others burn so that vegetation is hardly touched.
This is how natural wildfires function, now exacerbated by human caused climate change with higher temperatures, less rain, more drought, and high winds, in ecosystems across the U.S., a mosaic of burned and unburned lands.
Large wildfires are not a new phenomenon. In October 1871, in Wisconsin, a wildfire burned in Peshtigo, when it was dry, timber-framed buildings were the norm, sawdust from lumber and sawmill activities covered the area, and slash debris from logging was scattered around. This wildfire caused the deaths of 1,200 people and killed an estimated 2 billion trees. Other large wildfires in Wisconsin occurred in 1863, 1864, 1868, 1880, 1891, 1894, 1897, 1908, 1910, 1923, 1931, and 1933.
Wisconsin is not alone in having past large wildfires. In October 1918, in Cloquet, Minnesota, a large wildfire killed 800 people, burned 21 towns, and caused significant property damage. What is called, “The Great Fire”, occurred in August 1910, and burned three million acres of forest in Idaho and Montana. The wildfires that occur today in California and other places are not new and oftentimes are not as large as wildfires that burned historically.
How have wildfires affected the over 163,000-acre Sam Houston National Forest (SHNF, 50 miles north of Houston, Texas)? The Sierra Club has information it obtained from the U.S. Forest Service (FS) about wildfires in SHNF that covers the period 2016 through 2020.
What do we know?
1. 2016, 11 wildfires burned 89.65 acres (about 0.055% of SHNF); 11 Compartments (each Compartment is about 700-1,500 acres) had a wildfire; 11 fires (100%) were caused by humans; largest wildfire was 44.1 acres; smallest wildfire was 0.1 acre.
2. 2017, 12 wildfires burned 90.25 acres (about 0.0554% of SHNF); 11 Compartments had at least one wildfire; 11 wildfires (91.67%) were caused by humans; 1 wildfire (8.33%) was caused by lightning; largest wildfire was 51 acres; smallest wildfire was 0.1 acre.
3. 2018, 7 wildfires burned 4.5 acres (about 0.0028% of SHNF); 6 Compartments had at least 1 wildfire; 5 wildfires (71.43%) were caused by humans; 2 wildfires (28.57%) were caused by lightning; largest wildfire was 3 acres; smallest wildfire was 0.1 acre.
4. 2019, 7 wildfires burned 52.05 acres (about 0.032% of SHNF); 7 Compartments had 1 wildfire; 4 wildfires (57.14%) were caused by humans; 2 wildfires (28.57%) were caused by lightning; 1 wildfire (14.29%) had an unknown cause; largest wildfire was 47 acres; smallest wildfire was 0.1 acre.
5. 2020, 12 wildfires burned 78.46 acres (about 0.048% of SHNF); 11 Compartments had at least 1 wildfire; 7 wildfires (58.33%) were caused by humans; 3 wildfires (25%) were caused by lightning; 2 wildfires (16.67%) had an unknown cause; largest wildfire was 40 acres, smallest wildfire was 0.1 acre.
SHNF does not have the number and size of wildfires that occur in the Western U.S. Our wildfires are in most cases caused by us. Because of the small, fragmented, and highly roaded nature of SHNF, it’s relatively easy to access most wildfires and put them out. The FS has equipment and back-up support from local counties, cities, state agencies (like the Texas Forest Service), and other federal agencies to handle these wildfires.
Our climate, which includes 50 or more inches of rain/year, ensures that in many cases vegetation, soil, and leaf litter are somewhat moist. This does not mean we cannot have a significant wildfire. A significant wildfire occurred south of SHNF in the 2011 drought in the Magnolia, Texas area. However, the probability for a significant wildfire is low most years.
A program of prescribed burning to restore habitat for the federally endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker (RCW) helps control how much and what vegetation burns. Usually, in SHNF 20,000 to 40,000 acres are burned each year with prescribed fire. This means that if a wildfire starts in an area that has had a recent prescribed burn there is less vegetation (fuel) available to burn and the wildfire is not likely to dramatically increase in size or severity.
A change the Sierra Club wants the FS to make is the use of wildfires to meet forest management objectives (RCW habitat and ecosystem improvement). Many wildfires can be allowed to burn safely to attain these objectives. Additional acres would be allowed to burn to provide habitat for the RCW and other wildlife with reduced fire hazards since less highly flammable vegetation would be available for burning.
The Sierra Club will continue its interest in FS wildfire management in SHNF. We look forward to additional input and conversations about prescribed burning so that RCW, wildlife, and human safety can all be provided.
Author: Brandt Mannchen