Summit County plans large-scale wildfire training exercise

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

Evacuation and communications seen as critical elements in emergency response

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Summit County emergency responders along U.S. Highway 6 during a June, 2011 fire in Keystone Gulch, Colorado. Bob Berwyn photo.

By Summit Voice

Register for emergency notifications at www.SCAlert.org.

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FRISCO — Next week’s large-scale emergency response test in Summit County will include door-to-door visits by uniformed officials in the Ruby Ranch, Willowbrook Highlands and Ptarmigan Ranch subdivisions, notifying residents about evacuation procedures in case of a wildfire.

The April 30 exercise includes more than 100 local emergency responders and will test the ability of local agencies to respond to a mock scenario revolving around a number of wildfires which spread due to high winds. The Summit County Sheriff’s Office in particular will be testing plans for evacuation and public information. (more…)

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Environment: Trees cause pollution — but not on their own

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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Isoprene, a chemical emitted by trees interacts with manmade nitrogen oxides to create particulate pollution. Bob Berwyn photo.

Tree chemicals combine with nitrogen oxides to form potentially dangerous particulates

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — President Ronald Reagan might have been on to something when he infamously claimed that trees cause pollution. While he was widely ridiculed for his statement, scientists later confirmed that a certain chemical emitted by trees also contributes to the production of particulate matter in the atmosphere.

The chemical in question is isoprene, an abundant molecule in the air that protects leaves from oxygen damage and temperature fluctuations. But those chemical processes have not been well understood, so researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill set out to look for answers. (more…)

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Colorado: Federal funds to help restore watersheds in High Park, Waldo Canyon fire areas

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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A burned watershed in the footprint of he Waldo Canyon fire.

Critical work in High Park, Waldo Canyon fire areas to protect against flooding and erosion

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Federal agencies will continue to assist local Colorado governments with critical watershed restoration and protection work.

The projects include mulching, seeding, channel stabilization measures in areas hard-hit by last summer’s High Park and Waldo Canyon fires. The $19.8 million is  funded through the the Emergency Watershed Protection program.

Residences and neighborhoods built in fire-prone forest zones are at risk of flooding in burned areas; local and regional water supplies are also threatened.

(more…)

Filed under: Colorado, Environment, forest fires, forests, wildfires | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

California air pollution creeps into remote Sierra monument

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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Air pollution is a growing concern at Devils Postpile National Monument, near Mammoth Lakes, California. Photo courtesy National Park Service.

Wildfires, industrial sources contribute to ozone problems in the Eastern Sierra Nevada

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Devils Postpile National Monument in the eastern Sierra Nevada is about as far as you can get from California’s industrial urban centers, yet air quality at the site has suffered in recent years as pollution blows in from other parts of the state, according to a new U.S. Forest Service-led study.

The monument, near the resort town of Mammoth Lakes, features one of the best examples of columnar basalt formations and is also a gateway to High Sierra wilderness areas bordering on Yosemite National Park.

Ozone precursors (nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds) from wildland fires, as well as ozone from the Bay Area and Central Valley resulted in exceedances of federal air quality standards, as well as state air quality standards during the 2007-2008 study period, at levels that pose a risk to sensitive individuals and indicate a need for long-term ozone monitoring. (more…)

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Forest health task force session features wildfire info

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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Firefighters extinguish a small March 2012 blaze along Montezuma Road, in Summit County, Colorado. Bob Berwyn photo.

Experts to discuss local wildfire conditions

By Summit  Voice

FRISCO — Somewhat battered by decade-long waves of bark beetles, Summit County’s  forests are showing signs of a strong comeback.

In both logged and un-logged areas,young lodgepoles are spurting upward, with growth rates doubling in some areas and new stands of developing aspens on sunnier patches of ground. The regeneration is especially eye-catching in stands that haven’t been logged. With sunlight streaming through the bare branches of beetle-killed pines, a thriving mix of shrubs, berry bushes and grasses carpets the forest floor, proving shelter for new conifer species, including subalpine fir and Englemann spruce.

But the new forest, along with the beetle-killed areas, is still subject to the ever-present threat of wildfires, which are a natural part of lodgepole forest ecology. And since so many Summit County dwellings are on the fringes of those forests, local homes and neighborhoods are also at risk.

Recent spring snows have eased drought conditions, water and wildfire experts say there will still be a chance of fires later this summer, and they want educate local residents about the potential risk to neighborhoods.

This month’s Summit County Forest Health Task Force meeting (April 24, 7-8:30 p.m., at the old Frisco Community Center, 3rd and Granite) will feature talks from  local wildfire experts, including Ross Wilmore and Jeff Berino. (more…)

Filed under: climate and weather, Colorado, forest fires, forests, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news, wildfires | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Opinion: Letter from western governors a misguided, muddled attempt to hijack national forest management

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

Let science, not politics, guide forest management

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One man’s healthy forest is another man’s tree farm. Bob Berwyn photo.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Flying in the face of science, the Western Governors’ Association last week called on the U.S. Forest Service to do more logging in an effort to promote forest health.

The letter, signed by Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Utah Gov. Gary. R. Herbert, also seems to suggest that privatizing some activities on publicly owned national forest lands could help address what they called a forest health crisis — without a single mention of global warming or the crucial restorative role of wildfires in forest ecosystems. (more…)

Filed under: climate and weather, Colorado, commentary, Environment, Forest health, forests, global warming, writing | Tagged: , , , | 4 Comments »

Climate: Do fungi drive the forest carbon cycle?

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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A mushroom and spruce seedling grow intertwined in a Colorado forest. Bob Berwyn photo.

In some forests, up to 70 percent of carbon sequestration happens deep underground

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Humble mushrooms may play a much greater role in regulating forest carbon cycles than previously understood, according to new research from Sweden.

Most scientific literature suggests that the plant matter in northern forests is responsible for sequestering atmospheric carbon, but after carefully analyzing numerous soil samples, the Swedish scientists concluded that mycorrhizal fungi, which live in association with plant roots, are trapping the carbon deep in the ground as part of the process of nutrient exchange between the fungi and plant species. (more…)

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Environment: Can forest health be legislated?

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

Proposed Senate bill would require widespread national forest logging

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Healthy undergrowth and lodgepole regeneration in an unlogged stand of beetle-killed lodgepole pines near Frisco, Colorado. Bob Berwyn photo.

Salvage logging in a stand of beetle-killed lodgepole pines in Frisco, Colorado. Bob Berwyn photo.

Salvage logging in a stand of beetle-killed lodgepole pines in Frisco, Colorado. Bob Berwyn photo.

*This story has been corrected to include Sen. Michael Bennet as the primary author of the proposed bill. That information was left out of the previous version due to an editing error.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Federal land managers could get wider authority for more backcountry logging under a new bill proposed in the U.S. Senate by Michael Bennet (D-CO), along with co-sponsors Mark Udall (D-CO), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Max Baucus (D-MT).

The National Forest Insect and Disease Treatment Act is being pitched as a way to   help Forest Service treat insect and disease epidemics and promote overall forest health. As drafted, it directs the agency to treat threatened watersheds while prioritizing preservation of old-growth and large trees when possible. (more…)

Filed under: Colorado, Environment, Forest health, forests | Tagged: , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Environment: Longleaf pine grove, bunchgrass prairie designated as national natural landmarks

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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The Zumwalt Prairie in Oregon. Photo via Wikimedia under a GNU Free Documentation License.

Rare ecosystems added to landmark register

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Designation of two new national natural landmarks will preserve examples of two ecosystems that have nearly vanished in the U.S. The new national natural landmarks are the Wade Tract Preserve in Thomas County, Georgia, and Zumwalt Prairie in Wallowa County, Oregon.

The Wade Tract Preserve is one of the last old-growth stands of longleaf pine left in the world.  Scientists believe the site illustrates what portions of this region of the U.S. looked like at the time of European settlement. Trees within the privately-owned landmark range from saplings to trees well in excess of 300 years old.

The Zumwalt Prairie  is the best example of bunchgrass prairie remaining in North America.  This large, high-quality natural area also contains aspen groves, riparian woodlands, sagebrush shrublands, and bottomland wet grasslands.  The size and diversity of the site allow it to support large populations of raptors and mammals.  The new landmark is owned by The Nature Conservancy and is located within a 100,000-acre preserve. (more…)

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Global warming: Forest timberline impacts not so clear

Posted on April 13, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

Local factors, including geology and topography, play a critical role

Will global warming push forests up into this alpine tundra around Guanella Pass, in Clear Creek County, Colorado?

Will global warming push forests up into this alpine tundra around Guanella Pass, in Clear Creek County, Colorado?

Colorado recorded the greatest increase in average maximum temperatures — between .7 and .9 degrees — from the old normals, compiled between 1971 and 2000, and the new normals, which are based on temperature readings between 1981 and 2010. On average across the U.S., the new average temperatures are about .5 degrees warmer.

Colorado recorded the greatest increase in average maximum temperatures — between .7 and .9 degrees — from the old normals, compiled between 1971 and 2000, and the new normals, which are based on temperature readings between 1981 and 2010. On average across the U.S., the new average temperatures are about .5 degrees warmer.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — For residents of high-elevation regions, including Colorado — the impacts of global warming include a potentially radical change in the composition of plant communities. In mountainous areas, the distribution of many species is limited by factors related to elevation, including temperature.

With warmer and drier conditions potentially limiting growth at lower elevations, scientists have already documented the treeline creeping upward in some areas, but there are additional factors to consider, according to a new study from the University of Calgary.

Even in a warmer world, local conditions, including slope steepness, exposure and soil depth – will limit trees being established and growing on mountainsides, the research found. (more…)

Filed under: climate and weather, Colorado, Environment, forests, global warming | Tagged: , , , , | 1 Comment »

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