What's the Story?
By Kimberley Vogel, U.S.D.A. Forest Service, Washington Office,
Resources Director, TEAMS Enterprise
"Wow! Look at all those red trees. Cool! What kind are they?" asks the visitor from Ohio.
"Oh, those are dead trees, killed by the mountain pine beetle," says the downtown merchant.
"Really? Hmmm, that's interesting, what causes that? What's the story?"
Sound familiar? It is a common conversation in Routt County over the past few years. Similar conversations can be heard across the western United States, Canada, and Alaska where prolonged drought, shorter winters, and longer summers have created just the right conditions for insects and diseases that kill trees. Although bark beetles are always present in forests, trees weakened by consistent lack of water easily succumb to bark beetle attacks.
Cyclical drought, followed by insect and disease epidemics are a common occurrence in the forested environment. These disturbances kill the weakened trees and make way for new trees. However, an epidemic of this magnitude is a rare occurrence and unprecedented in recorded history.
Pine beetles carry a fungus on their bodies. When they enter the tree the fungus is transferred to the tree and spreads, blocking the transport of water up the trunk. This fungus, in combination with girdling-as the beetle larvae eats its way around the tree-kills the tree. Tree needles remain green for about a year after the tree has been killed then they turn reddish brown in the next year, and fall off throughout the following year leaving a dead gray tree.
In this decade, we will see miles and miles and hundreds of thousands of acres of these dead trees. In our local area alone more than 200,000 acres of trees, including pine, spruce, fir, and aspen have been killed by beetles, fungi, root rot, and other forest rejuvenators. Over one million forested acres in southern Wyoming and Northern Colorado have been affected, and the number is on the rise every year.
"What's being done about it?" asks the man as he pays for his purchases." There is a huge on-going effort to use the wood and prevent wildfire," says the merchant.
The U.S. Forest Service has stepped up efforts to mitigate the effects of the beetle epidemic, reduce fire potential, and increase public safety.
Projects in 2008 were aimed at reducing falling tree hazards, reducing fuel loads and protection of high valued trees in campgrounds and picnic areas including:
- Preventative spraying of lodgepole and ponderosa pine for safety and aesthetic purposes in recreation sites.
- Removal of hazard trees in recreation sites.
- Fuel treatment addressing potential fire hazards.
- Timber Salvage: to produce lumber, wood pellets for heating, and firewood.
The U.S. Forest Service, Colorado State Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and Colorado State Parks have worked closely with partners in these efforts.
The Bark Beetle Information Task Force, a local grassroots community group, has focused on educational efforts for the past ten years. Letting people know that the drought and other forest disturbances associated with climate change would bring change was their first initiative. Creating an understanding that everyone has a responsibility to take action has been the collective goal of the task force. Their educational efforts soon moved to wildfire danger as the acres of dead trees grew. In the past few years the group has been focused on attracting diverse industry to mitigate the fire danger and to make products from the dead trees.
Similar efforts have sprung up in communities across the West as property owners, business owners, public land managers, and elected officials have struggled to understand changing landscapes, focus on the safety of people and property, and embrace a future that may look different from the one they were expecting ten years ago.
The wildfires of 2001 - 2004 (especially the summer of 2002) were an eye opener to people who have built lives in forested areas. Many have taken action to create defensible space around their homes. However, many have a tremendous amount of work to do as trees continue to die at an alarming rate.
"Aren't you sad that the forest will be changing?" he asks as he takes his bag.
"Sure. But I'm coming to terms with it, and I'm excited about the new trees, and the future forests. Have you been for a hike up Seedhouse where the fires were? The forest is full of baby trees! You should go…" perks up the merchant as he excitedly gives directions to the tourist.
Over the next several years, we will see more dead trees, we may see more intense forest fires, and we will watch the new trees grow and become a young, vibrant forest.
This edition of HomeLink is focused on providing information about the bark beetle epidemic, what happens to the forest after beetles move through, and how the dead trees will affect the community.
In the pages to come, find out the answers to the many questions that visitors to our area and our own Routt County citizens have been asking again and again.
Have you been wondering…
How bark beetles communicate?
Why beetle killed trees have a blue stain running through the wood?
Is blue stained wood structurally sound?
Can I buy local blue stained wood?
What can be made out of the beetle killed wood?
What is the “Be Green-Buy Blue” campaign?
When will the fire danger be the highest?
Can fire behavior be predicted?
What makes a tree hazardous?
Is it dangerous to walk in the woods?
What is being done about all the dead trees?
For more information about how you can protect your home or get involved in restoration projects contact your local U.S. Forest Service or Colorado State Forest offices.
Features
The Beetle Kill Issue
10 Years Strong
Building Green With Beetle Kill Wood
A Cut Above - Harvesting and Milling
Securing Safer Forests by Salvaging Snags
Stimulus Funding Hits the Ground
Departments
The Green Scene
Builder Perspectives
Decor & Style
Real Estate
Archive
Winter 2007
Archive
Summer 2008