Historically, natural events as well as native American tribes have ignited wildfires that were able to periodically mitigate the build-up of biomass on landscapes. Early settlers with European land management mindsets largely viewed all wildfires as disruptive and destructive with no beneficial roles. The Willamette Valley alone was intentionally burned on an annual basis by native Americans to maintain a productive oak savannah. By the early 1900s after the 1910 Idaho and Montana mega-fires the U.S. had made wildfire public enemy number one and set out to extinguish and prevent it at all costs. Following World War II with the aid of modified surplus equipment, the U.S. government became very proficient at putting out fire. Acts were passed and education campaigns such as Smokey Bear were implemented to further sway the public’s perception of fire. It wasn’t until the 1960s during the “eco-revolution” movements when people started realizing that fire had a role to play in just about all ecosystems. “Let burn” policies were passed in the 1970s which directed the forest service to let the fire burn when and where appropriate, mostly in wilderness areas or national parks at the beginning where the money wouldn’t be lost by stakeholders. Fast forward to today, and the results of mismanaging fuels can be seen each dry season when ignition occurs. Wildfires are able to move unobstructed due to continuous carpeting of biomass with no natural fire breaks. Each year debris accumulates and because the natural cycles of fire regimes have been disrupted it doesn’t take much for a wildfire to become out of control.
