What is a Prescribed Burn? | American Forest Fires Clip | EarthX - video Dailymotion

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EarthX Website: https://earthxmedia.com/    What is a prescribed burn and how can such a destructive force of nature be beneficial?   Fire is an essential part of the life cycle in the forests of the western United States. Just like each forest is different, every fire is unique.    About American Forest Fires:  Are government policies and bureaucracy the REAL fire starters in America? Are answers to a major crisis staring us in the face? Learn what brought us to this point, and the innovative solutions which could keep disaster from setting nature ablaze.    This clip comes from Season 1, Episode 1: "Burning Down the House"    EarthX  Love Our Planet.  The Official Network of Earth Day.    About Us:      At EarthX, we believe our planet is a pretty special place. The people, landscapes, and critters are likely unique to the entire universe, so we consider ourselves lucky to be here. We are committed to protecting the environment by inspiring conservation and sustainability, and our programming along with our range of expert hosts support this mission. We’re glad you’re with us.     EarthX is a media company dedicated to inspiring people to care about the planet. We take an omni channel approach to reach audiences of every age through its robust 24/7 linear channel distributed across cable and FAST outlets, along with dynamic, solution oriented short form content on social and digital platforms. EarthX is home to original series, documentaries and snackable content that offer sustainable solutions to environmental challenges. EarthX is the only network that delivers entertaining and inspiring topics that impact and inspire our lives on climate and sustainability.      EarthX Website: https://earthxmedia.com/    Follow Us:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/earthxtv/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/earthxtv  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/earthxtv    How to watch:   United States:   - Spectrum  - AT&T U-verse (1267)  - DIRECTV (267)  - Philo  - FuboTV  - Plex  - Fire TV       #EarthDay #Environment #Sustainability #Eco-friendly #Conservation #EarthxTV #EarthX

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00:00Fire serves a vital role.

00:04It clears areas for species that need sunlight.

00:07It keeps diseases at bay by thinning and eliminating unhealthy trees.

00:11And it provides nutrients to the soil.

00:14Fire is an essential part of the cycle of life in western forests.

00:18And just like each forest is different, each forest's fire is unique.

00:23Here in the western United States, those forests had typically evolved

00:29where fire would come every 3, 4, 5, 10 years.

00:34The forest developed a structure that was beautifully adapted to fire.

00:40In fact, it was sort of collaborative with the fire.

00:45The native people that first settled this land understood the importance of fire.

00:51And, as its first land managers, they learned to use the fire to their advantage.

00:57Historically, the tribes have always done prescribed burning as a management tool

01:03to keep the inventory of the brush and the biomass and the trees to a minimum level.

01:10Amerindians from New Jersey to California burned our forests

01:15to create open patches for game and food.

01:19They kept the forest floor pretty clean so they could have basket material

01:24and hunt game more easily.

01:27Native Americans actively managed our wildlands here in California for millennia

01:32using prescribed fire and prescribed burns.

01:35You would see 4 to 12 million acres burn annually with prescribed fire.

01:44A prescribed burn works like this.

01:47During a part of the year when the land is dry enough to burn,

01:51but not so dry that fire can't be controlled,

01:54often in late winter or early spring,

01:56an area of the forest is purposely ignited.

01:59As it burns, fire managers ensure that it stays in the controlled area.

02:04The goal is to burn the underbrush, grass, and other material on the forest floor,

02:09but not to burn so hot that the larger trees are damaged.

02:13This accomplishes many useful things.

02:16It clears out the forest, making it easier to travel and hunt.

02:20It rejuvenates the soil and makes room for beneficial plants to grow

02:24that would otherwise be choked out by the underbrush.

02:28And perhaps most importantly, it makes it much harder for uncontrolled fires,

02:33for example those caused by lightning, to move from the forest floor to the canopy.

02:38This is because controlled burn removes the so-called ladder fuels,

02:42any tall, woody material that could create a fire path from the forest floor to the canopy.

02:48In this way, prescribed burns provide a very resilient fire protection

02:52for those living in or near the forest.

02:55It's a very efficient way to manage forests,

02:58which raises the question, if fire is a natural part of Western forests,

03:03and Native peoples who live there develop ways to coexist with,

03:06and in fact thrive with, fire, what changed?

03:10How did we go from this...

03:13to this?

03:15So we're trying to get back to a state where we have fire on the landscape

03:19that has that historical, restorative impact

03:23that is part of that traditional ecological knowledge

03:26and that tribes had actively and successfully managed for millennia.

03:30The evolution and the history of this is important

03:33because cultural fire was eliminated in California starting in the 1600s

03:39when you started getting colonizations.

03:41The new arrivals found giant trees growing in open savannas,

03:45full of grass with which to graze their animals, acorns, berries, and abundant game.

03:51The new settlers thought they had arrived in Eden,

03:54an unpeopled land God had made specifically for them.

03:58In reality, they were witnessing thousands of years

04:01of careful forest management by Native peoples.

What is a Prescribed Burn? | American Forest Fires Clip | EarthX

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