Снижение вырубки лесов и рост CO2 привели к накоплению горючих материалов и беспрецедентному пожароопасному сезону в США

Forestry Matters – Part 9 Published 1:30 am Thursday, September 3, 2026 Between 1960 and 2025, total harvest levels in Washington State dropped from 5 billion bd. ft. (board feet) to about 2.7 billion bd. ft. In Oregon harvests dropped from 9 billion bd. ft. to 4 billion bd. ft.; in both cases over 80% of that came from private lands, and no clear cutting on federal lands. Many think that national forest old growth stands are under threat from clear cutting, but that is not the case. Federal timber harvesting has dropped to 1 to 2% of the total due to federal environmental rules. From these numbers we can see there has been very little forest management activity on federal lands leading to the dramatically increased fuel load. However, during this era, another phenomenon has been occurring that not received much attention yet is having a significant impact on all vegetative growth, trees included. It is the CO2 Fertilization Effect (CFE). CO2 levels have been rising as anyone following the climate issue is aware. CO2 levels have increased from 325 to 429 ppm from 1960 to the present. The formula for photosynthesis is 6CO2 + 6H20 yields C6H12O6 + 6O2: so CO2 plus water produces a carbohydrate (plant substance) plus 6 molecules of oxygen. For plants to survive they need at least 150 ppm. About 18,000 years ago during the last glacial period, levels dropped to 170 -180 ppm. This was a truly existential event. Thousands of studies of the rates of plant growth at rising CO2 concentrations show that the optimum level for most plant species is between 800 and 1200 ppm; 2 to 3 times above current levels. As a result of the increase between 1960 and the present, Douglas-fir is growing 3% more rapidly, ponderosa pine is growing 21% faster and red alder about 11%, further adding to our fuel load issue. The good news is that crop species such as corn, wheat, and coffee are growing 11, 12 and 14% faster respectively, improving our food supply. The over-achiever is blackberry which now grows 225% more rapidly, in case you haven’t noticed. The CFE has another positive. With rising CO2 levels plants become more drought resistant. To photosynthesize, the stomate on need to remain open long enough to take in the necessary CO2. When the stomata are open the plant is transpiring, so higher CO2 levels allow the plants to conserve water. Virtually all plant species as benefiting from the CFE. (co2science.org) With less harvesting occurring, our forest are growing, with the growth rate further accelerated by the CFE, which also makes plants moderately more drought resistant. Hopefully this is making clear the fact that we have no shortage of trees, or forests for that matter. What we desperately need to do is manage the bounty that we have. The Native Americans maintained fuel levels much below today’s levels, and we need to strive to reduce fuel loads to levels that will allow us to re-employ their practices in the future. This year is proving to be an exceptional fire year. As of August 9, 2026, the National Interagency Fire Center Data Base showed that to-date this year we had both the greatest number of fires and the highest acreage burned for the past 10 years. The trend line from 1983 to the present for acres burned is strongly upward, with a very close correlation to the fuel load over the same period. This is no coincidence; as our professor stated during the forest fire portion of the Forest Protection Class at OSU in the mid-1960s, he told us to write down the 3 most important factors relating to forest fires in this order, then proceeded to say fuel load, fuel load and fuel load. He was correct then and it is correct now. As mentioned previously, a major obstacle to implementing necessary silvicultural practices has been the environmental groups use of legal means to block action. Their success has resulted in a dramatic increase in the fuel load over the past 46 years which is resulting in our current fire predicament.. There is contradiction between the intent of, and the current application of the thoughts of two of the original leaders of this movement, John Muir and Aldo Leopold which will be the next topic. See theforestmatters.com for source document and additional information. Don Healy lives in Lynnwood. He graduated with a B.S. Degree in Forest Management from Oregon State University in 1968, spent 10 years in the field and has followed forestry matters avidly during retirement.