Indian Summer

Today I got to attend a hearing on wildfires in relation to global warming. Here are my notes on the hearing:

House (Select) Energy Independence and Global Warming (10 a.m.): Holds a hearing on “Wildfires and the Climate Crisis.” Abigail Kimbell, chief of the U.S. Forest Service; Steven Running, professor of ecology at the University of Montana; Michael Francis, director of the Forest Program and deputy vice president of the Wilderness Society; and Michael Medler, member of Firefighters United for Safety Ethics and Ecology, and assistant professor at Huxley College, testify.

The hearing was much more contentious in the beginning than in the second session after votes. Ms. Kimbell pointed out many of the problems facing America’s forests, particularly in the West and the Great Lakes region, where rising average temperatures have led to shifts in the ecological system. This means increased life cycles for some particularly hazardous insect life that kills trees and leaves behind a wake of flammable tinder. Also discussed was the level of CO2 emissions that are released from wildfires and scientists have said that the current wildfires have spewed enough emissions into the air over the past couple weeks where they are at the same level all the power plants in California have emitted all year. What was generally accepted though was that global warming itself does not directly lead to wildfires in that wildfires do not start more frequently because the earth is warmer. However, people put themselves and forests at risk by developing deeper and deeper into forests known for wildfire activity. Many wildfires are allowed and run their course naturally without any risk to the population. But developments near fires can be filled with harmful air particles released by fires into the air causing severe illness. A few of the members attacked the administration for not giving Ms. Kimbell enough of resources to fight global warming caused by deforestization and a few questioned her policies in terms of focusing on suppressing fires versus preventing them. Thinning forests and removing brush was a widely hailed idea on both sides of the aisle for ways to contain forest fires and Republicans attempted to criticize liberal environmentalist groups who block the thinning of forests or the removal of dead trees after a fire so that a forest can be replanted. Ms. Kimbell complained that there is too much litigation her agency must go through to rehab forests after a fire and by the time they are allowed to do their work, it has lost its value. The rest of the speakers spoke in a panel after a recess and were in wide agreement global warming should be a concern for Americans in regards to wildfires and that new areas are becoming vulnerable to potential fire activity.

Global warming to me is silly to deny any longer. Climate change is quite obviously a fact, and whether or not humans are directly responsible and on what scale, it begs for us as a society to embrace more environmentally friendly policies to ensure our carbon emissions aren't ruining our planet. Environmentalism is a concern that to me transcends party lines as it belongs to neither side of the aisle; it is neither a Democratic issue nor a Republican one, though I would be the first to admit my party has done less than it should in terms of embracing environmentally responsible policies. And while some put it off as a less than immediate concern, like the bankrupting of our social security system, it does face potentially devastating consequences if gone unchecked in the present, again like social security. It's time for our government to not only embrace climate change for what it really is, but also to take steps NOW to curb global warming. It's encouraging seeing businesses begin to embrace the reality of what the American populace wants by going "green," but practical solutions go beyond alternative energies and fuel efficient cars. They touch on conservation of our land and preserving the healing powers of our planet by restoring mother nature to rule itself. When housing booms threaten these already strained forests, people not only risk the health of their environment, but risk their own health with the frequent wildfires that NATURALLY rip through a region. And when agencies like the U.S. Forest Service cannot thin forests of dry, choking brush and dead vegetation due to interest groups (liberal and conservative), we are asking for disaster. Like my notes mention, forest fires such as the ones in California, exacerbated by the consequences of global warming, produce tremendous amounts of CO2 and pollute the air with unhealthy particle emissions.

There are sensible solutions for fighting global warming that occur beyond carpooling or recycling, though the widespread practice of both are certainly effective. Its just up to the government to do its part in terms of protecting its population any way it can and not just rely on citizens to pick up the slack where the government can't deal with a tremendous problem itself. We all own this issue... it's about time the governing body caught up to where it's people stand and institute sensible global warming measures.