Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is partially blaming “radical environmentalists” for the dozens of wildfires burning in California and elsewhere in the West.
In a USA Today opinion piece published Wednesday, Zinke said “active forest management” — including logging, prescribed burns and clearing brush — is the way to minimize wildfires on federal land.
But green groups sue the federal government to stop such management practices, Zinke charged, exacerbating the problem.
“Every year we watch our forests burn, and every year there is a call for action,” he wrote.
“Yet, when action comes, and we try to thin forests of dead and dying timber, or we try to sustainably harvest timber from dense and fire-prone areas, we are attacked with frivolous litigation from radical environmentalists who would rather see forests and communities burn than see a logger in the woods.” – READ MORE
[divider][/divider]President Donald Trump Asserted Sunday That California’s Environmental Laws On Water Use Were Making The Wildfires Worse.
“California wildfires are being magnified & made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren’t allowing massive amount of readily available water to be properly utilized,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “It is being diverted into the Pacific Ocean.”
Trump commented after the Mendocino Complex fire burned 254,000 acres by Sunday morning, and the Carr Fire had killed seven people, burned 145,000 acres, and destroyed over 1,000 homes. – READ MORE
[divider][/divider]President Trump Signed A ‘major Disaster’ Declaration On Saturday Paving The Way For California To Receive Fire Mitigation Funds And Recovery Grants And Low-cost Loans For Shasta County Individuals And Business Owners.
California currently has 21 fires burning, with the Carr Fire near Redding now ranking as the state’s 15th largest in wildfire history after burning 154,524 acres, according to Cal Fire. With only 41 percent containment and the National Weather Service posting Red Flag warnings for fire and smoke through Sunday, the Carr Fire that began on July 23 is expected to continue to grow.
Cal Fire reported that a huge amount of resources have been concentrated on trying to get containment on the Carr Fire including 386 fire engines; 99 water tenders; 16 helicopters; 77 hand crews; 123 bulldozers; 4,674 personnel; and air tankers from throughout the state flying fire suppression missions.
The Carr Fire has destroyed 1,080 residences, 24 commercial structures and 500 outbuildings. Hundreds of structures have been damaged and 1,358 structures are currently at risk, according to the latest estimates from Cal Fire. – READ MORE
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