WILDFIRES ON REBURNED AREAS

 Do you ever wonder if there is anything left out there to burn after all the fires over the last decade(s)?   

A few weeks ago I drove up to Oakridge to inquire about camping at Waldo Lake.   I was informed by the Forest Service that Waldo Lake was closed to the public due to the Cedar Creek Fire as it was spreading around the north end of the lake.   Knowing this area north of the lake burned 10 years ago, I asked what the fuel load was on the old burned over area.    Looking at a map on the wall at the Middle Fork Ranger Station I was told that the regrowth of under brush and old burned trees had fallen to the ground adding to the fuel load creating another catastrophic fire that eventually burned into the many campgrounds on the east side of the lake.    I'm not sure what the answer is on how to manage these burned over areas.   It might depend on site specific conditions, such as protection of communities, recreation facilities, road systems and other improvements.  My son informs me the Forest Service is removing many of the dead trees from the Caldor Fire that burned into the forests near South Lake Tahoe as a prevention measure to future fires in an urban area.    Highway 50 leading up to South Lake Tahoe from Sacramento is having all burned trees that are a hazard removed by Caltrans.    This is also true along I-5 going through the mountains of northern California from recent fires.    Locally we can see it up the North Umpqua Highway.

Fire has always been part of the ecosystem and may become more frequent on burned over areas with time, especially with a warming climate.    Will these burned over areas ever recover to what they once were?