Clean & Green: Fighting Fire With Fire
by February 22, 2012 11:46 am 110 views
Forest fires can be one of nature’s deadliest enemies, but when controlled by experts, fire can replenish the land and spur proper growth.
Ironically, setting the woods on fire under strict conditions can also actually help prevent major forest fires in the future. We caught up with some experts in the field who take us to the edge of the friendly fire in this week’s Clean and Green segment.
Burn boss and master naturalist Bert Turner oversees a recent controlled burn operation in western Pulaski County near Pinnacle Mountain. Before the first leaf is lit, Turner plans, coordinates, and researches every possible scenario and plots it in a 30-page volume.
Working with the State Parks personnel, the Forestry Commission and The Nature Conservancy, Turner’s crew sets fire to parts of a 394-acre tract around Pinnacle Mountain.
The burn helps destroy unwanted growth and dead matter on the forest floor, which actually improves the habitat for wildlife and opens up the forest to more sunlight.
An element of their work also guards against forest fires later in the year.
Learn more about how Turner’s crew fights fire with fire, so to speak, in this video.