By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
SEPT. 18, 2020 | It’s best for me to ignore many of the pronouncements coming from Donald Trump. As for his tweets, I don’t get them, though occasionally one is so outrageous that it pops out at me in news stories.
So, in general, I try to let the people who enjoy the president and his antics read and pass them on to their cohorts, and let me get on with other matters.
Yet this week, when the president was in California campaigning, then visited McClellan Park—the former Air Force base north of Sacramento—and talked about the fires, it got to me. (You note that the president did not actually get off his airplane and come to the fire sites, other than being at the airport near the capital city.)
The president told us that the way to fight the big fires was to use fire prevention. He also told frustrated California officials that not to worry, for “It will start getting cooler. Just you watch.” In reality, facts tell us that it’s been getting hotter with rising summer temperatures in California in the last few years.
Yes, that’s what he said. I heard that on the radio. It seemed a little late to introduce prevention to the infernos that were burning out of control not only in California, but also in Oregon and Washington.
Furthermore, our president told us he realized that these trees have a lot of leaves, and fall to the ground, get dry, catch fire, and help spread the fire once it gets started. Then he reasoned that if we swept up the leaves off the forest floor, that would provide less fuel when a fire started.
Now we know that President Trump is a privileged person, and never had physical jobs (other than playing golf). We wonder if he has ever raked leaves, or used a powered blower to blow leaves. The average homeowner with any trees in their yard has probably been much more experienced in leaf raking or blowing than the president. Actually, I suspect the president has neither raked nor blown the first leaf.
And while talking about California trees, much of the Western forest is composed mostly of pine-type trees, and tend to have more needles than leaves. Of course, the needles are just as prone to catching fire as leaves.
While we in Georgia are subject to forest fires, and have had some large (for us) ones in recent years, Georgia does not compare to California in forest acreage. The University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources tells us that there are 33 million acres of forest in California, and that the national Bureau of Land Management and National Parks own and manage 19 million acres, or 57 percent. State and local governments control only three percent, while the rest is private. Georgia has 22 million acres, with 40.62 percent of the state forested.
All told, more than three million acres have burned in California, representing three percent of the state’s total landmass. In terms of acreage, 2020 is already the worst wildfire season in modern history in California.
The president’s comments when in California may not make much difference in whether people will vote for him in November. Though I know very little about California wildfires, I know something about raking and blowing leaves. And I know that federal wildlife and land people employ the most modern methods to manage our forests.
To say that President Trump’s comments were insensitive is redundant, since so many of his pronouncements are. It is, as the president might say, “Sad.”
Local Weather Note: In the 24 hour period ending at 1 p.m. Thursday, at our home in Norcross, the tropical storm rain measured 5.7 inches.
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