The State of the Trees · Episode 11 of 13 · 21 min
The Canary's Verdict: What Actually Helps a Forest?
The finale asks what actually helps a forest and whether it is being done. Proponents point to prescribed and Indigenous cultural fire, cross-boundary stewardship, restoration funding, old-growth protection and assisted migration; critics point to the suppression legacy, weak biosecurity and sprawl. A sharp 2024 to 2026 policy swing gets both sides' best case, and the verdict is that the canary is neither dead nor fine, and the fight is over means, not ends.
Who's who
- Randy Moore+1 more episodeForest Service chief who paused prescribed fire after Hermits Peak in 2022
Where it happens
- Hermits Peak, New Mexico+1 more episode2022 escaped prescribed burns became the state's largest fire
- National forests, United StatesRoadless rule covered about 58.5 million acres
Timeline
- 1935Forest Service adopts the 10 a.m. policy
- 2001Roadless Area Conservation Rule protects about 58.5 million acres
- 2014Good Neighbor Authority created in the Farm Bill
- 2022Executive order orders a mature and old-growth inventory; Hermits Peak fire
- 2024California signs a cultural-burning agreement with the Karuk Tribe
Still debated
Policy fights center on means, not ends. On the roadless rule, proponents of rescission say it blocks thinning and fire access, while critics say rescission opens protected forest to roads and logging.
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