Ryan ChartrandThe article titled “Why environmentalists hurt the environment” stated that any “typical environmentalist” believes the recent outbreaks of massive wildlife fires are a result of global warming.
Well, I am not sure what is meant by “typical environmentalist,” but all the environmentalists I know would never even begin to blame wildfires on global warming. In fact, many environmentalists (including me and most of my “typical environmentalist” friends) agree that thinning can be an integral part of a healthy forest management plan.
Cascadia Wildlands Project and the Oregon Natural Resource Council are just two conservation groups that are also proponents of forest thinning.
Although some environmentalist groups may fight against the Forest Service’s proposals for forest thinning and fuel breaks, this is usually done because the proposals intend to do more than just clear brush and small trees. Many of these thinning proposals are, of course, nothing more than timber-cutting programs by another name. According to the Forest Trust report, 46 percent of the Forest Service’s projects cited were commercial timber sales, including some that clearly had nothing to do with fire prevention.
I know it is easy to sit back and blame environmentalists for harming the environment, but I think you may want to start looking for someone else to blame.