>
> How could you possibly know that?
>
> Stan Goldstein
> goldst at u.washington.edu
>
> On Wed, 3 Aug 1994, Virginia Langdon wrote:
>
> > Ever since humans began altering the natural forest ground cover by
> > extinguishing every fire started by natural causes, fires now burn hotter
> > and are much more devastating than they were before
> > the intervention of man.
> >
> >
> >
>
I'm not a expert in this area but my wife works for the Forest Service
and has told me that they can tell by the physical evidence after a
fire: the amount and type of damage to trees, soil profile, etc.
This "post-mortem" analysis is not unlike the forensics that take
place in arson investigations.

The upshod is that what Virginia states is clearly the case. This is
know from comparisions between habitats managed for fire and those that
have not received such management (i.e. allowed to burn naturally).


Ed Rybak
Sequent Computer Systems
15450 SW Koll Parkway
Beaverton, OR 97006
phone: (503) 578-4336
fax: (503) 578-3811
rybak at sequent.sequent.com

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