A Burning Issue
January - February 2008
Last October, wildfires in California burned for 19 days, charring over 500,000 acres, destroying at least 1,500 homes, and killing nine people. It was big news for weeks.
Has there ever been a fire that big in Michigan?
In 1871, a major wildfire in Lower Michigan burned about 2 million acres and killed at least 200 people. It didn't receive much national attention. Michigan’s fire was overshadowed by the Great Chicago fire that same year which burned about 2,000 acres, killed 200 to 300 people, and left about 30,000 of the city’s 90,000 residents homeless. The Chicago fire even overshadowed a prairie fire that burned 1.5 million acres in Wisconsin, destroying the town of Peshtigo and several other villages, killing an estimated 1,200 to 2,500 people.
What’s the difference between wildfire and wildland fire?
Wildfire is fire out of control. A wildland fire is one that burns in an uninhabited area. Wildland fires are important to wildlife. Many ecosystems evolved with fire. Some species absolutely need fire to thrive. In fact, fires are even prescribed for ecosystem health.
What are the goals of prescribed burning?
Is fire used as often as it should be for wildland health?
There is a general consensus among foresters and wildlife biologists that more burning would be beneficial to many areas of Michigan, but land managers are reluctant to use fire. Their reasons include scheduling difficulties due to Michigan’s climate, possible air pollution from smoke, and potential safety, liability, and public relations problems. Fresh in their memory may be the tragic Mack Lake fire in 1980 in the Mio area. Designed to create habitat on jack pine plains for the endangered Kirtland’s warbler, the fire, inadvisably set during high winds, escaped onto private lands. Twenty-five thousand acres of wildland were burned, 44 homes destroyed, and one fire fighter was killed.
Debacles such as that instill caution, if not fear, in land managers, and diminish public confidence in “controlled” burns. Often the public knows about the dangers, but not the benefits of fire as a management tool. In the early 1990s, a national study of attitudes about controlled fire showed widely divided public opinion. It was clear a large part of our general population had retained the message which Smokey Bear ingrained in our culture—Prevent Forest Fires!
Fire policy
Fire policies in the United States have evolved over time. Once fire science developed to the point where we could control and seemingly eliminate fire, that’s exactly what we tried to do.
Unfortunately, in the absence of periodic fires, huge amounts of fuel began building up in certain forests. When fires did start, they were harder to control.
According to the DNR website, “In the 1930's, researchers in the Southern U.S. began challenging the negative notions about fire that had come as a result of the catastrophic wildfires experienced around the country in the late 1800's and early 1900's. They argued that fire was an integral part of natural landscapes. Since then, fire science has become an important part of managing wildland systems. “
Fire—what is it good for?
The unique benefits of prescribed burning, its low cost as a management tool, and the important ecological role of fire make it critical that we use it where appropriate
Plants revegetating burned areas are higher in protein, calcium, phosphorous, and other nutrients than on unburned areas. Forage quantities are also typically greater. This can translate into higher range carrying capacity for deer, elk, and other wildlife.
Increased fruiting by blueberry and other shrubs is another benefit of prescribed burning, which not only helps maintain openings in forests, but also greatly increases their value to deer and other wildlife. In Northern Michigan, bracken fern, a plant with rather low value to wildlife, can come to dominate clearings over time. While fire initially tends to stimulate bracken fern, intense burns will increase blueberry and Juneberry for use by wildlife, and decrease the less valuable bracken fern.
In his popular book Managing Northern Forests for Wildlife ruffed grouse expert Gordon Gullion writes: “At the outset I’ll say that there is probably no tool or technique that can be used in ruffed grouse or deer management that equals the total benefits to be gained from the wise use of fire. Ecologically, these animals are fire dependent species. During the past half-million years or more, these animals became biologically adapted to the quality of habitats produced and maintained by occasional forest fires. When used properly, costs can vary from a fifth to a tenth of the costs of other management techniques and any of the mechanical treatments are at best a poor second choice to the use of fire.”
Naturally-occurring jack pine stands, especially those of value to the Kirtland’s warbler, are produced by fire. Heat from fire is needed to open jack pine cones to release the seed, and burning also prepares the ground for germination of that seed. The Kirtland’s warbler nests on the ground in young jack pine stands dominated by 5 to 20 foot trees. Such stands, which are characterized by dense clumps of jack pines interspersed with numerous small, grassy openings, can be produced without the use of fire, by special cuttings and plantings. But the costs are much higher, and the stands are not as readily used by warblers as those originating from fire.
Fire and prairies
In the last 15 years, there has been increased interest in development of warm-season, native prairie grasses such as switchgrass, big bluestem, and Indian grass. Prairies have dwindled in Michigan and there have been associated losses in numbers of song bird, like the bobolink, and game birds like the prairie chicken (now gone from Michigan) and the sharp-tailed grouse. The important prairie grasses virtually depend on periodic burns—about every four or five years—to maintain dense, vigorous stands which can resist invasion by weeds and woody plants. And fire tends to increase the diversity of grasslands because as it “hops and skips” across the land, it leaves a mosaic of intensely-burned and lightly-burned areas. That often produces just the kind of habitat many grassland wildlife species need.
Fire and Wetlands
Grassy wetlands can also be improved as wildlife habitat by burning, and fire followed by flooding is often used to control cattail. To reproduce, cattails need stalks extending above the water surface in spring. Burning can remove the above-water portion of the plants during low water periods, which are then “drowned out” by elevated water levels. Such treatments can be done with fire at a fraction of the costs of mechanical cutting.
History of fire in MI
The disastrous fires of the late 1800s led to passage of Michigan's first forest fire law in 1903 (Act 249). It authorized the state to protect lands outside of state forests, made township supervisors, mayors, and village presidents ex-officio fire wardens, and authorized the payment of temporary fire wardens. Fire wardens were authorized to prevent and suppress fires, draft firefighters, arrest fire law violators, and report on fires.
In 1921, the Department of Conservation was established and the responsibility for preventing and controlling wildfires was transferred from local officials to the new department. However, the state continued to be plagued by destructive wildfires. In 1929, the Forest Fire Experiment Station was established to try to better understand the behavior of fires so that they could be better controlled.
According to the DNR website, “early firefighting efforts meant deploying hundreds of people with shovels, and horse-drawn plows (which were not intended for this purpose), and buckets of water. This crude method was often not very successful, and other methods were sought. The state purchased its first tractor for fireline construction in 1917. Since then, the crawler tractor mounted plow has become the most important tool in wildfire suppression. The development of highly mobile water-pumping units greatly increased the effectiveness of the fireline tractor plow. Over the years, Michigan has developed equipment and tactics specifically for a small, highly-trained, mechanized wildfire suppression force.”
Today, firefighting is high tech, with helicopters and airplanes capable of scooping up water from lakes to drop on the fire.
Native American view of fire
Native Americans used fire to promote the grasslands which nurtured the bison they depended upon. They also used fire to control the movement of animals so they could hunt them more effectively.
What causes wildfires in Michigan?
People burning trash is the major cause of wildfire in Michigan, according to MSU Extension Service Emergency Management Program. Smoking and lightning generally cause less than five percent of all Michigan wildfires.
Global warming and wildfire
Global warming will cause more evaporation from the soil and drought conditions conducive to wildfires. Summer of 2007 saw extreme fires worldwide, from California, to Michigan’s Sleeper Lakes fire which charred 20,000 acres, to the 3,000 forest fires in Greece. Only time will confirm whether these were isolated incidents or part of a trend caused by global warming.
Dr. Patrick Rusz, Sarah Uhle and Cheryl Bartz all contributed to this article.
Last October, wildfires in California burned for 19 days, charring over 500,000 acres, destroying at least 1,500 homes, and killing nine people. It was big news for weeks.
Has there ever been a fire that big in Michigan?
In 1871, a major wildfire in Lower Michigan burned about 2 million acres and killed at least 200 people. It didn't receive much national attention. Michigan’s fire was overshadowed by the Great Chicago fire that same year which burned about 2,000 acres, killed 200 to 300 people, and left about 30,000 of the city’s 90,000 residents homeless. The Chicago fire even overshadowed a prairie fire that burned 1.5 million acres in Wisconsin, destroying the town of Peshtigo and several other villages, killing an estimated 1,200 to 2,500 people.
What’s the difference between wildfire and wildland fire?
Wildfire is fire out of control. A wildland fire is one that burns in an uninhabited area. Wildland fires are important to wildlife. Many ecosystems evolved with fire. Some species absolutely need fire to thrive. In fact, fires are even prescribed for ecosystem health.
What are the goals of prescribed burning?
- Setting back woody vegetation to provide browse and other wildlife food.
- Inhibiting growth of unwanted hardwood trees.
- Creating favorable conditions for grasses and legumes.
- Stimulating growth of jack pine, aspen, and certain other trees.
- Returning nutrients to the soil to promote plant growth.
- Increasing invertebrate populations to provide food for young birds.
- Removing slash from cutover areas.
- Reducing wildfire hazard by removing naturally-occurring woody debris and other potential fuel from the forest floor.
Is fire used as often as it should be for wildland health?
There is a general consensus among foresters and wildlife biologists that more burning would be beneficial to many areas of Michigan, but land managers are reluctant to use fire. Their reasons include scheduling difficulties due to Michigan’s climate, possible air pollution from smoke, and potential safety, liability, and public relations problems. Fresh in their memory may be the tragic Mack Lake fire in 1980 in the Mio area. Designed to create habitat on jack pine plains for the endangered Kirtland’s warbler, the fire, inadvisably set during high winds, escaped onto private lands. Twenty-five thousand acres of wildland were burned, 44 homes destroyed, and one fire fighter was killed.
Debacles such as that instill caution, if not fear, in land managers, and diminish public confidence in “controlled” burns. Often the public knows about the dangers, but not the benefits of fire as a management tool. In the early 1990s, a national study of attitudes about controlled fire showed widely divided public opinion. It was clear a large part of our general population had retained the message which Smokey Bear ingrained in our culture—Prevent Forest Fires!
Fire policy
Fire policies in the United States have evolved over time. Once fire science developed to the point where we could control and seemingly eliminate fire, that’s exactly what we tried to do.
Unfortunately, in the absence of periodic fires, huge amounts of fuel began building up in certain forests. When fires did start, they were harder to control.
According to the DNR website, “In the 1930's, researchers in the Southern U.S. began challenging the negative notions about fire that had come as a result of the catastrophic wildfires experienced around the country in the late 1800's and early 1900's. They argued that fire was an integral part of natural landscapes. Since then, fire science has become an important part of managing wildland systems. “
Fire—what is it good for?
The unique benefits of prescribed burning, its low cost as a management tool, and the important ecological role of fire make it critical that we use it where appropriate
Plants revegetating burned areas are higher in protein, calcium, phosphorous, and other nutrients than on unburned areas. Forage quantities are also typically greater. This can translate into higher range carrying capacity for deer, elk, and other wildlife.
Increased fruiting by blueberry and other shrubs is another benefit of prescribed burning, which not only helps maintain openings in forests, but also greatly increases their value to deer and other wildlife. In Northern Michigan, bracken fern, a plant with rather low value to wildlife, can come to dominate clearings over time. While fire initially tends to stimulate bracken fern, intense burns will increase blueberry and Juneberry for use by wildlife, and decrease the less valuable bracken fern.
In his popular book Managing Northern Forests for Wildlife ruffed grouse expert Gordon Gullion writes: “At the outset I’ll say that there is probably no tool or technique that can be used in ruffed grouse or deer management that equals the total benefits to be gained from the wise use of fire. Ecologically, these animals are fire dependent species. During the past half-million years or more, these animals became biologically adapted to the quality of habitats produced and maintained by occasional forest fires. When used properly, costs can vary from a fifth to a tenth of the costs of other management techniques and any of the mechanical treatments are at best a poor second choice to the use of fire.”
Naturally-occurring jack pine stands, especially those of value to the Kirtland’s warbler, are produced by fire. Heat from fire is needed to open jack pine cones to release the seed, and burning also prepares the ground for germination of that seed. The Kirtland’s warbler nests on the ground in young jack pine stands dominated by 5 to 20 foot trees. Such stands, which are characterized by dense clumps of jack pines interspersed with numerous small, grassy openings, can be produced without the use of fire, by special cuttings and plantings. But the costs are much higher, and the stands are not as readily used by warblers as those originating from fire.
Fire and prairies
In the last 15 years, there has been increased interest in development of warm-season, native prairie grasses such as switchgrass, big bluestem, and Indian grass. Prairies have dwindled in Michigan and there have been associated losses in numbers of song bird, like the bobolink, and game birds like the prairie chicken (now gone from Michigan) and the sharp-tailed grouse. The important prairie grasses virtually depend on periodic burns—about every four or five years—to maintain dense, vigorous stands which can resist invasion by weeds and woody plants. And fire tends to increase the diversity of grasslands because as it “hops and skips” across the land, it leaves a mosaic of intensely-burned and lightly-burned areas. That often produces just the kind of habitat many grassland wildlife species need.
Fire and Wetlands
Grassy wetlands can also be improved as wildlife habitat by burning, and fire followed by flooding is often used to control cattail. To reproduce, cattails need stalks extending above the water surface in spring. Burning can remove the above-water portion of the plants during low water periods, which are then “drowned out” by elevated water levels. Such treatments can be done with fire at a fraction of the costs of mechanical cutting.
History of fire in MI
The disastrous fires of the late 1800s led to passage of Michigan's first forest fire law in 1903 (Act 249). It authorized the state to protect lands outside of state forests, made township supervisors, mayors, and village presidents ex-officio fire wardens, and authorized the payment of temporary fire wardens. Fire wardens were authorized to prevent and suppress fires, draft firefighters, arrest fire law violators, and report on fires.
In 1921, the Department of Conservation was established and the responsibility for preventing and controlling wildfires was transferred from local officials to the new department. However, the state continued to be plagued by destructive wildfires. In 1929, the Forest Fire Experiment Station was established to try to better understand the behavior of fires so that they could be better controlled.
According to the DNR website, “early firefighting efforts meant deploying hundreds of people with shovels, and horse-drawn plows (which were not intended for this purpose), and buckets of water. This crude method was often not very successful, and other methods were sought. The state purchased its first tractor for fireline construction in 1917. Since then, the crawler tractor mounted plow has become the most important tool in wildfire suppression. The development of highly mobile water-pumping units greatly increased the effectiveness of the fireline tractor plow. Over the years, Michigan has developed equipment and tactics specifically for a small, highly-trained, mechanized wildfire suppression force.”
Today, firefighting is high tech, with helicopters and airplanes capable of scooping up water from lakes to drop on the fire.
Native American view of fire
Native Americans used fire to promote the grasslands which nurtured the bison they depended upon. They also used fire to control the movement of animals so they could hunt them more effectively.
What causes wildfires in Michigan?
People burning trash is the major cause of wildfire in Michigan, according to MSU Extension Service Emergency Management Program. Smoking and lightning generally cause less than five percent of all Michigan wildfires.
Global warming and wildfire
Global warming will cause more evaporation from the soil and drought conditions conducive to wildfires. Summer of 2007 saw extreme fires worldwide, from California, to Michigan’s Sleeper Lakes fire which charred 20,000 acres, to the 3,000 forest fires in Greece. Only time will confirm whether these were isolated incidents or part of a trend caused by global warming.
Dr. Patrick Rusz, Sarah Uhle and Cheryl Bartz all contributed to this article.