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Understanding fire -

Though we tend to think of danger and destruction when we think of fire, it’s actually a natural part of forest and grassland ecology. Learning that not all fires are meant to be put out is the first and biggest lesson that we must learn.

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Controlled burning -

Also known as prescribed, back, or hazard reduction burning, these controlled fires are a more recently adopted strategy by fire managers, considering that indigenous populations have been doing it for millennia.

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Why are controlled fires important? -

The fires are set intentionally for purposes of forest management, farming, greenhouse gas abatement, or to combat bigger wildfires ravaging thousands of acres and putting whole communities at risk.

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Hazard reduction -

Controlled burning is often conducted during the cooler months to reduce the amount of fuel that is available to a main fire before it can reach the burnt area, consequently decreasing the likelihood of serious hotter fires.

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Rejuvenating forests -

Controlled burning also stimulates the germination of valuable types of forest trees while unearthing soil mineral layers, which increase seedling vitality, allowing for a renewal of the forest.

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It’s built into nature’s DNA -

Many trees depend on fire as a successful way to clear out competition and release their seeds. The giant sequoia, for example, requires fire to open its cones and release its seeds, as well as to clear space by removing competing vegetation.

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A long history of controlled burns -

Fire history studies have actually documented regular wildland fires ignited by indigenous peoples in North America and Australia, indicating that fire’s benefits to both plant and animal life have long been known.

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Beating fire at its own game -

For ages, indigenous peoples would set small fires during dry times of the year, resulting in a fine-scale mosaic with different types of vegetation and different ages of fuel, thus decreasing the likelihood of bushfires and increasing the availability of plant and animal foods.

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“Cool burning” -

This cultural burning, or indigenous fire management, applies low-intensity fires to the land, also known as “cool burns.” They allow flora and fauna to escape, they keep grass seeds and young trees intact for regrowth, and they are self-extinguishing, meaning they go out right after burning the grass, Creative Spirit reports.

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Colonization changed everything -

Various studies have shown the parallel experiences of indigenous groups as European colonizers invaded and started putting bans on burning, punishing native peoples if they persisted.

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A blazing mistake -

In the US, these ancient practices were ordered to stop in the early and mid-20th century, when fire policies were enacted with the uneducated goal of suppressing all fires, requiring government-approved burn permits. This led to ground fuel buildup and dense growth, which began posing the risk of catastrophic wildfires.

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Science has been working to combat this negligence - More recent studies showed that thinned forests actually mitigate fire intensity and flame length much more effectively than untouched or fire-proofed areas.

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Modern methods fall short -

Cut off from the millennia of indigenous knowledge, and now with decades of fuel buildup and dense growth on their hands, modern fire managers struggle to combat the increasingly catastrophic wildfires that now also have climate change on their side.

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The modern approach -

Contemporary fire managers also attempt hazard reduction burning, but, usually to minimize costs, they often drop incendiaries from aircraft. Not only has this technique failed to prevent subsequent wildfires, but it’s also proven to be disastrous for biodiversity, according to research-based publication The Conversation.

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Traditional indigenous fire practices -

Contrary to the modern, rushed, scientifically detached fire management, traditional fire practices are a slow, ancient craft based on local knowledge and spiritual connection to country.

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Slow-scale -

Indigenous peoples would traditionally perform controlled burns by walking the land in a slow and literally down-to-earth fashion. This meant they could better control the timing and spread of fire, as well as its ecological effects.

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The problem of setting fires from the air -

Especially when descending upon remote areas where vast areas of burning is desired, setting fires from the air results in bigger, more intense fires that can devastate the life below instead of saving or rejuvenating it.

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Modern fire managers also work from the ground -

When contemporary fire managers use ground crews, they usually work in weather windows such as fog and at cooler times such as night, similar to indigenous fire practice, in order to keep fires controlled and to protect sensitive areas.

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The trees’ canopy is sacred -

Indigenous fire science preserves the tree canopy for good reasons: it provides shade, fruit flowers, and seeds; allows animals to return quickly; reduces carbon emissions; provides refuge for insects and small animals; preserves tree cycles; and triggers germination for the seeds in the canopy.

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Difference in tools and technique -

Modern ground crews use “drip torches,” which are hand-held devices that drip flaming fuel onto the ground. They also tend to burn in a box pattern.

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Difference in tools and technique -

By contrast, the indigenous technique is much slower, traditionally dragging a smouldering stick through the bush, and burning in a spiral or strip pattern to achieve a mosaic effect.

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Why does pattern matter? -

Burning in a mosaic pattern–leaving a mixture of unburnt islands within the targeting burn area–is much less devastating for wildlife, providing cover and maintaining essential biodiversity.

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Timing is important -

Timing extends past dry seasons; it’s about interpreting nature’s signals of when to burn. Bill Tripp, a member of the Karuk tribe in California, told the New York Times that it is crucial not to interrupt natural reproductive cycles with fire (i.e. nesting birds, flowering plants), but to burn in ways that encourage growth of critical plants.

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Timing is important -

The right time to burn depends on the ecosystem, as each one has its own identity and needs, which is why local tribes are very useful. Generally, early mornings are ideal for cool fires thanks to the combination of dew, gentle winds, and the sun.

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Reading the land -

Indigenous knowledge involves reading the land—ecosystems, patches, fuel loads, grasses, soil type, predicted ash types—and figuring out what type of fire is needed, and when. It’s according to the land instead of to a computer program, satellite imaging, or bureaucrat statistics.

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The sacred connection of fire to spirit -

The labor-intensive process of controlled or cool burning is a labor of love. According to Creative Spirits, fire holds great spiritual meaning across Aboriginal cultures, around which stories, memories, and dances are passed down. When uncontrolled fire ravages the land, it is likened to burning up all the sacred memories and integral connections to the land.

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In Australia - The invasion of Europeans in Australia severely disrupted indigenous fire practice, though more recently initiatives such as the Firesticks Alliance are being led by indigenous peoples to help train those dealing with fires and to teach those handling wildfires the ecological effects of cultural burning.

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Significant strides have already been made -

According to the New York Times, researchers have used satellite data to calculate that an indigenous burning program started seven years ago has cut hot and destructive wildfires in half and reduced carbon emissions by more than 40%.

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Cross-cultural partnerships -

The goal is not to hand over the fire crisis to indigenous populations, but rather to merge the best of Western science (i.e. satellite imaging, helicopters, etc.) and traditional knowledge to more effectively address it.

Sources: (The Conversation) (New York Times) (Creative Spirits)

See also: Nature's warning signs before disaster strikes

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